Turning encounters into innovation

ANNUAL REPORT 2023
Fiscal year ended May 31, 2023

Our Philosophy
MissionVisionValuesTurning encounters into innovation

Become business infrastructure

Face your mission and love your work

Our world is built on encounters; they are the very basis of society.

Transport networks, electrical grids, the internet.

Anticipate the experience

People encounter people.

These are some of the roads of society.

Make decisions with determination and intent

Companies encounter companies.
We believe another road is possible.
We believe these connections bring innovation,

A new form of infrastructure for the business world.

which in turn leads to new ways of working and doing business.
This road connects people with people, companies with companies,
By developing innovative products,

Find a faster way
Leverage all strengths
Appreciate and be inspired
Donʼt fear change, and challenge yourself

and turns everyday business into innovation.

we change how people and companies value their encounters,
and even change how those encounters take place.

Lead the customer

We aim to be that new road, that business infrastructure.

PremiseBalancing security and convenience*1 The graph indicates net sales for fiscal years ended in May (figures prior to the year ended May 2016 are non-consolidated, while subsequent figures are consolidated).

History

FY2023 –FY2019 – FY2022

Since our founding, we have provided services that help solve diverse issues that companies and businesspeople
face. As a leading software-as-a-service (SaaS) company in Japan, we have done this by developing innovativetechnologies and creative operational practices. Aiming to realize our vision of “Become business infrastructure,”
we will pursue new solutions that address uncovered needs within societal issues as we seek sustainable businessgrowth and increased corporate value.

FY2023

Expanding business fields

Acquired Institute of Language
Understanding Inc. as a group company

FY2019Listed on the Mothers Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and raised approximately 2.1 billion
yen through a public offering of shares
Raised approximately 4.7 billion yen through third-party allocation of new shares

FY2012 – FY2018

FY2020Strengthening
investments throughlarge-scale fundraising

Acquired logmi, Inc. as a group company
Listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange

FY2021
Acquired Diamond Corporate Data Services, Inc. as a group company
Transferred to the Prime Market on the Tokyo Stock Exchange

FY2012Raised approximately 500 million yen through third-party allocation of new shares

FY2022FY2013Acquired CREATIVE SURVEY INC. as a group company
Established Sansan Global Development Center, Inc. (Philippines)

Broadcast first Sansan TV commercial
Changed legal name to Sansan, Inc.
Raised approximately 1.4 billion yen through third-party allocation of new shares

33,67425,51016,184FY2023

Established Sansan Global Pte. Ltd. (Singapore)
Raised approximately 2 billion yen through third-party allocation of new shares

13,362FY2017

Founding andlaunch of business

Raised approximately 4.2 billion yen through third-party
allocation of new shares

28.0% to 32.0%
Aiming to accelerate
our sales growth rate

10,206FY2018FY2007

Raised approximately 3 billion yen throughthird-party allocation of new shares

SAN SAN, Inc. (now Sansan, Inc.) founded

32,653

20,420FY2015

FY2007– FY2011

to

7,324
4,839
3,151

Net sales (millions of yen) *1
23

139

270

401

560

815

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

The company, Sansan, was founded in June 2007
and launched under the name Link Knowledge. It
was a service for internally managing and sharing
business card information in companies. Until FY2011,
we worked to launch our business with little capital,
as we had greatly limited access to financing.

1,289
2013

1,963

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

The increased activity in the venture capital market from FY2012 made it easier for unlistedcompanies to raise funds. We capitalized on this change and raised over 10 billion yen
by FY2018. We also expanded our marketing activities including through TV commercials.
Our first TV commercial was award-winning and attracted national attention. These
commercials have significantly contributed to raising the profile of our company andservices.

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023 (forecast)

After we were listed on the Mothers Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) in FY2019 we were then transferred to the TSEʼs Prime
Market. From 2020, we began leveraging our technology and expertise from Sansan and Eight to expand our services to business fields
such as invoicing and contracts. In May 2020, we launched the cloud-based invoice management solution Bill One, and in January 2022
the contract database Contract One. We also added a corporate business card option to Bill One in June 2023, and thereby entered thefintech space.
*1 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31 (figures prior to FY2015 are non-consolidated, while subsequent figures are consolidated).

4

Sansan, Inc.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

5

Contents

IR Information Disclosure

Integrity

02 Our Philosophy 04 History 06 Contents

Annual Report

Chapter 1 Story

Non-Finance

10 CEO Message 16 Long-Term Goals 18 Material Issues (Priority Issues) 20 Value Creation Model・Sustainability site

・Business Reports・IR site

Comprehensiveness32 CFO Message 36 Medium-Term Management Policy 38 Short-Term Results and Plans 40 COO Message
44 Business Strategies by Segment 52 CHRO Message 56 Human Capital
62 CISO, DPO, Engineering Division Head Message 66 R&D 68 Information Security 70 Environment

Reference Guidelines
In preparing this report, we referred to the guidelines
on the right and sought our stakeholdersʼ opinions andChapter 3 Governance
76 Outside Directorsʼ Messages 80 Corporate Governance 86 Directors 88 Compliance 90 Risk Management

requests to strengthen the content.

Data
93 ESG Data 97 Consolidated Financial Statements 101 Results by Segment 102 Company and Stock Information

Reporting Period

FY2022 (June 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023)

This report may contain future assumptions, prospects,

competition with other companies; changes in laws,

and forecasts based on plans. However, these forward-

regulations, and others; and other future factors.

looking statements are based on the information

Therefore, the actual performance announced may varyavailable at the time of the reportʼs preparation, and on

depending on these factors. The Company assumes nocertain assumptions we accept as reasonable. Sansan,

responsibility for any damage caused through the use

Inc. (“the Company”) does not promise to achieve these.

of information in this report. Additionally, regarding new

Major differences may occur between the forecast andinformation and future events, the Company has no

the actual performance, including changes in economic

obligation to revise or officially announce revisions to theconditions, consumer needs, and user preferences;

future prospects in this report.

Editorial Policy
This annual report aims to clearly communicate financial

narrative and the progress of our business activities

and non-financial information on the company, based

toward achieving the Groupʼs mission and vision.

on an integrated approach. We aim to provide a deeper

For more detailed information about us, please

understanding among our stakeholders, includingrefer to our IR and sustainability sites, which provide

shareholders and investors, of our value creation

comprehensive disclosures.

Sansan, Inc.

- International Integrated Reporting Framework- Guidance for Collaborative Value Creation- Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
Recommendations- Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)
Standards- Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards- World Intellectual Capital/Assets Initiative (WICI) resources- SDG Compass

Key Points of the Annual Report 2023

Disclaimer Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

6

・Presentation Materials

Reports

Chapter 2 Strategies

Annual Report 2023

・Financial Results

・Corporate Governance

22 Management Resources and the Results We Deliver 24 Business Model 28 Social Value

Finance・Securities Reports

To support the understanding of our value
creation efforts, in this report we have reorganized
information along a timeline of long-term,
medium-term, and short-term, anchored onmaterial issues (priority issues). We cover not justthe FY2029 quantitative targets for material issues

but also their positioning in our value creation
model and strategies. The messages from eachdirector introduce the background and ouraspirations behind setting material issue targets,conveying our unique value creation narrative for
improving sustainable corporate value.

- Past Annual Reports -Annual Report 2020

Annual Report 2021

Annual Report 2022

Our first annual report aimed
to concisely communicate
information including ourcompany overview, strategies, andmanagement foundation.

Our second annual report focusedon enhancing non-financial
information, covering sustainability
policies and ESG initiatives.

Our third annual reportemphasized including more direct
voices through messages frompeople inside and outside thecompany to better communicate
our value creation narrative.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

7

Chapter 1

Story
Chapter 1 covers our efforts to sustainably increase our corporate
value, with material issues (priority issues) as a central aspect.
This includes the CEOʼs message, long-term goals, management
resources and the results we deliver, and social value, all outlined
within the framework of our value creation model.

CONTENTS
P10 - CEO Message
P16 - Long-Term Goals
P18 - Material Issues (Priority Issues)
P20 - Value Creation Model

8

Sansan, Inc.

P22 - Management Resources andthe Results We Deliver01

P24 - Business Model
P28 - Social Value

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

9

CEO Message
Representative Director & CEO

Chika Terada

Reigniting Sales Expansion andEntering a Stage of Higher Growth

FY2022 in Review

10

Sansan, Inc.

The past year has been a

evolved into a value-added sales

targets. Recent drivers include

changeover period as the worldʼs

DX solution, encompassing not justgrowing demand for compliancepeople have shifted from with-business cards but also a range

with Japanʼs Electronic Bookkeeping

COVID to post-COVID. The

of touchpoints, while integrating a

Act, updated in January 2022, andpandemic is generally said to have

corporate database.

the Invoicing System beginning fromgenerated a tailwind for digital

In last yearʼs annual report, I

October 2023. But legal compliancetransformation (DX). In reality, thesaid I wanted to look back in 3 oris not Bill Oneʼs main purpose. Thisbusiness environment has differed

5 years and see the COVID period

solution helps to digitize accounting

greatly depending on the nature of

as a significant turning point forprocesses and accelerate monthly

individual services and products.

our growth. While itʼs still too early

settlement. Although Iʼm pleased

For Sansan, our groupʼs backbone

to judge, with our product renewal

with Bill Oneʼs sharp growth, Iʼm

and a service developed fortiming coinciding with broader

even more gratified when users

business card-based contact

economic reopening, I felt ourtell us it has sped up their monthly

management, we came up against

business growth reigniting, especiallyfinancial closing.

a headwind in which face-to-facein the second half of FY2022.

Meanwhile, Eight, with 3.3+ million

contact dramatically declined. We

Another standout was Bill One,users, creates value not simply as atherefore embarked on a large-

our invoice management service

revenue driver but as infrastructure,scale product redesign that would

launched in May 2020. Withpowering data utilization within

normally have taken about 10 years,

tailwinds from workstyle reforms

Sansan. Going forward, we will

yet we completed it in just 2 years

during the pandemic, Bill One has

prioritize early profitability over topline

amid COVID. Sansan has now

grown rapidly beyond internal

growth in Eightʼs business strategy.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

11

Direction for FY2023

Toward Medium-to-Long-Term Growth
To achieve this, our first priority

for business card management but

net sales forecast of 28% to 32% year-

was an organizational overhaul.

as a sales DX solution. This gives us

on-year growth. This is the first time

Pre-COVID, we operated underconfidence to play offense again.

This July, we announced a full-yearin 4 years we have announced aa divisional system of separate

Accordingly, this June, we reverted

sales growth rate around 30%. Whilebusiness units, but during theto a divisional system. Changing

weʼve been expanding our businesspandemic, we switched to a sales

from pursuing optimization during

scale, this factors into shifting Eight

structure that would optimize

the pandemic to now pursuingfrom topline growth to a profit

resources by redirecting Sansan

maximization reflects the growth

focus, powerfully demonstrating

personnel to the rapidly growing Bill

reignition we currently feel. Iʼmaccelerated growth for FY2023. At

One. However, with Sansanʼs productexcited that with Sansan, which

the same time, I recognize this year

overhaul, we have seen record-

accounts for most of our consolidated

we must prove this growth rate is nothigh new order values quarter

net sales, leading the way, weʼrea one-time event but rather is ourbasis, confirming that the market

again entering a stage of igniting

new standard.

is now embracing Sansan not justgrowth for the entire company.

Achieving discontinuous growththrough continuous
accumulation of steady progress
Toward Medium-to-Long-Term Growth
I categorize our history thus far

12established corporate card businessand Eight, our lineup now includes

once we get through these, I envision

practices to pinpoint management

Contract One, our contract databasecreating an integrated productstrategies and establish anthat digitizes all types of contracts,combining all these solutions. The

appropriate risk management systemfacilitating their utilization as company

issue of how to move toward that goal

to support business growth.

assets. Although each has challenges

is a topic for consideration over the

In addition to Sansan, Bill One,to overcome to grow as a core pillar,

medium-to-long term.

Sustainability-Oriented Management

acceleration, we will enter a new

deal of time collecting receipts and

FY2022 was also a year in whichefficient use of natural resources,

compared with other industries. In

in three phases. Phase 1 was ourfourth stage, a step higher thaninvoices and matching them to credit

we clearly established our stancewe established a goal of increasingother words, pursuing early carbon

founding in 2007 and our startup.

Phase 3. With this coinciding with ourcard statements for reconciliation.

on sustainability. First, we identified

the number of transactions using

neutrality would not greatly disrupt

Phase 2 was the period until ourplanned office relocation next year, I

This is an analog process that slows

10 material issues (priority issues)

paperless functions on our solutions

our business model. Naturally then,IPO in 2019, when we strengthened

feel that weʼre at an inflection point

the monthly closing of accounts.

across five areas, appointing a

to 120 million.

weʼre firmly committed to achieving

investments through major

qualitatively as well.

By providing the Bill One Businessdirector as the owner of each. We

Environmental issues are

our FY2029 target, and, as a show

fundraising. Phase 3 is the period

In June 2023, we launched the Bill

Card to automate this matching,also set quantitative targets forexistential, not merely businessof our strong determination, we

since going public. In this journey,

One Business Card corporate credit

we eliminate this bottleneck. As aeach issue. I recognize that weʼreconcerns̶they will determine

will steadily execute detailed plansweʼve progressed step-by-step, likecard as an optional Bill One feature.

standalone corporate card, many

only at the beginning of integrating

humanityʼs survival. In todayʼs

toward this target. Also, the process

steadily adding layers. Personally, I

From Bill Oneʼs launch, we havecompetitors exist, but as a value-sustainability and management, andworld, no one can dismiss this asof integrating sustainability into ourstrongly desire discontinuous growth,

tracked, as an internal KPI, invoiceadding Bill One option, it is unique.

I intend to accelerate our initiatives

unimportant. Sustainability initiatives

management reaffirmed for me thatbut continuous accumulation of

volume per year on the platform,

Existing customers have alreadymoving forward.

are undoubtedly critical. In setting

our solutions themselves promote a

steady progress is the work required

which reached 16 trillion yen on an

welcomed the card as a way toto achieve it. Now, though, I feel anannualized basis by April 2023. With

accelerate their monthly settlements,

even stronger conviction that weʼrethis transaction volume, we soughton the right path, and a sense thatto provide more value to customers,

Among the 10 issues, I was

our FY2029 target, we consideredpaperless society. Thus, expanding

assigned ownership of “Conserve

whether to aim for complete carbon

our business contributes to societal

but the real leap in growth is still

the Environment Through Business.”neutrality immediately or start with asustainability. We accordingly set a

to come. Of course, as transaction

To address the issue of climate

50% reduction. However, as a cloud

highly ambitious target for usage of

our stride is accelerating, and theentering fintech for the first time

volume through the corporate cardchange, we set a target of achieving

software provider, our IT services

paperless functions on our solutions

ground covered with each step isby launching this corporate card.

scales 10x or 100x, it will affect our

carbon neutrality for Scope 1 andbusiness model does not inherently

as a KPI.

expanding. Through renewed growth

Accounting teams spend a greatbalance sheet, but we will draw on

2 emissions by FY2029. In terms of

produce a large carbon footprint

Sansan, Inc.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

13

Vision for 100 Years in the Future
While we set FY2029 sustainability

as stated in our vision. But nois another value-creation proposal.

targets, I increasingly think about

customer explicitly asks forSomeone conceiving and delivering

Sansan in the much longer term of,“business infrastructure.” They use

new ideas shapes enduringsay, 100 years from now. Looking

our solutions, recognize the value

purpose, even 100 years from now.

not about 5 or 10 years into theprovided, and increase use until

Accumulating innovative proposals

future, but rather a century̶athey realize that our solutions havethat create new value that has

time when I wonʼt be present in the

become so mission-critical thatnever before existed, bringing themcompany̶surprisingly brings manybusiness would come to a stop

to life, and ultimately attaining

things into focus, as well as many

without Sansan. This is the level

irreplaceable business infrastructure

more opportunities to consider ourof impact on business availability

status̶this is my vision.

corporate purpose.

and daily utility we aim for in our

We highly value being a missiondriven company. Our mission is

infrastructure role.
So, how do we get there? The key

One hundred years from now,
while still maintaining our relative
position as a listed company and“Turning encounters into innovation,”is continually delivering innovative

an IT company, I want us to have an

and our vision to “Become businessvalue proposals to the market andabsolute presence and overflowing

infrastructure” is shared by everyonesociety. Business card management

uniqueness within those areas. We

in Sansan. We also have values

is now an established market, butshould continually deliver originalthat represent a code of conduct,

it originated from the common

customer experiences only weand a premise that expresses thefrustration I saw with many people

can provide, with overwhelming

basic assumption in our work. We

around me struggling with this task,

originality and unmatched global

have refined these concepts in ourleading me to propose digitizing andprominence. This is the kind of

philosophy, and the words used tosharing cards company-wide̶thecompany I envision.

articulate them, through extensive

genesis of Sansan. Bill One adapted

and repeated company-wide

our business card digitization

expansion, primarily with Bill One,discussions, and we will continue

expertise for a new domain, invoices,in countries like Singapore andadapting them to suit the times.

creating another market. This is what

Thailand, with initial user adoption.

I sense. Establishment of Kamiyama

We will decisively pursue growth into become indispensable business

Marugoto College of Design,

the global market over the medium-

infrastructure for customers,

Technology, and Entrepreneurshipto-long term.

Our current envisioned future is

We have also begun global

Solving issues by proposing
unprecedented services
for the market and society.

Source of Value Creation
Our medium-to-long-term value

while explaining our business andpriority. At the same time, envisioning

creation has two engines: the ability

value to new audiences can be

Sansan in 100 years, we need to start

to conceive innovative proposals

challenging, the fact that we provide

considering succession planning.

and the horsepower to deliver themsolutions not yet seen globally aids

In May 2023, we established aas real experiences. This process

understanding.

Nomination and Remunerationof creating new value lacks any

We propose and deliver solutions

Advisory Committee, but apart fromsense of betting on trends, suchthat do not yet exist anywhere else

discussions there, on the execution

as in seeing how a certain otherin the world. The fact Sansan isside, weʼre also beginning to study

company seems to be doing wellmade up of people who embracesuccession planning concepts,

or a certain business will grow inthis challenge is a major strength ofresearching examples at otherthe years ahead. Rather, we takethe company. Pioneering initiatives

founder-led firms. Yet, 16 years since

the opposite stance of realizing ourrequire tremendous drive to realize,

founding Sansan, weʼre still climbing

own unprecedented proposals andand we have that ability, with astep by step with the summit notfinding meaning and excitement intrack record and strength to keep

yet in sight. Even as we proceedcreating value through them.

delivering. People with ideas andwith discussions on successor

the abilities to make them real aredevelopment, my passion and sense

overseas players like those in

the source of our value creation.

of responsibility are undiminished for

the U.S. are ahead, with many

Hiring and nurturing such talentleading the management as founderIn the IT services space especially,

services in Japan termed “Japaneseis the most critical managementand driving growth to see Sansan

versions” of existing foreign services.

issue for our medium-to-long-

become business infrastructure.

Sansan is completely different. So,

term growth, and a company-wide

To Our Stakeholders
In our dialogues with various

you will continue to focus on ouradded value that Sansan alone canstakeholders, I truly appreciate

originality going forward.

deliver. I invite all our stakeholders to

those in the capital markets who

14

Sansan, Inc.

With our efforts during thehave a deep understanding of

pandemic clearly starting to produce

Sansan̶who recognize and haveresults, we will now reignite net sales

a high regard for our uniqueness.

growth. The overall DX tailwind

As a company dedicated to turning

continues, and within this growthoriginal ideas into business, I hopemarket, we will constantly pursue

watch as we move ahead, and I lookforward to your continued support.

Chika Terada
Representative Director & CEO

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

15

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Long-Term Goals
To realize our vision of “Become business infrastructure,” we have set sustaining solid sales growth and achieving
profit growth that surpasses sales growth as long-term financial goals. We have also established quantitative targets
for material issues (priority issues) for FY2029 as non-financial indicators and are working to achieve them.

FY2022 Results

FY2023
Forecasts

FY2024(Medium-Term Financial
Goals)FY2029Long-Term Goals

Medium-Term Financial Goals (FY2022 – FY2024)

Financial Goals

Consolidated Net Sales• 22,510 million yen• +24.9% YoY• 32,653 to 33,674 million
yen• +28.0% to+32.0% YoY

Adjusted Consolidated
Operating Profit

Adjusted Consolidated
Operating Profit Margin

Material Issues (Priority issues)

Balance Security andConvenience
Transform Work ThroughInnovative Digital
Transformation Services
Respect Employee
Diversity and Producing
Innovation• 942 million yen• +28.9% YoY• 1,240 to 1,852• 3.7%• +0.1 pts. YoY• 3.8% to 5.5%
• +0.1 pts. to +1.8 pts. YoY

Maintain growth rate in the mid20% range or higher

Sustain solid sales growth andachieve profit growth that
surpasses sales growth

million yen• +31.7% to +96.6% YoY

Improve profit margin
every fiscal year

• Number of major incidents 0• Proportion of those qualified as Protection ofIndividual Information Person 88.0%• Number of major incidents 0• Proportion of those qualified as Protection of Individual Information
Person maintained at 80% or higher• Number of items converted from analog to digital• Number of items converted from analog to digital information using

information using our services *1 190 million• Number of users of our services *1 5.73 million people

our services 500 million• Number of users of our services 20 million people• Proportion of recruitment through referrals 12.0%• Unipos *2 posting rate 59.6%• Ratio of female employees in management• Proportion of recruitment through referrals 35%• Unipos posting rate 80%• Ratio of female employees in management positions 30% or higher• Ratio of female employees 45% or higher

positions*3 17.8%• Ratio of female employees *3 34.9%

Establish a Firm
Management Structure
to Support Rapid
Business Growth• Ratio of female Directors 22.2%• Number of significant compliance violations 0• Proportion of employees receiving compliance-

Conserve theEnvironment ThroughBusiness• Scope 1+2 *4 851 t-CO2• Number of uses of paperless functions in our• Ratio of female Directors 30% or higher• Number of significant compliance violations 0• Proportion of employees receiving compliance-related training 100%

related training 100%Realizing asustainable
society andbusiness
growthBecome business
infrastructure• Scope 1+2 carbon neutral• Number of uses of paperless functions in our services 120 million

services *1 10 million*1 Results for the Companyʼs services are aggregated for Sansan, Bill One, Contract One, and Eight. *2 Unipos is a service centered on the peer bonus system provided by Unipos, Inc.
*3 Results and targets presented here are for the Company on a non-consolidated basis. *4 Scope 1 is calculated by aggregating direct GHG emissions from our own office and facilities. Scope
2 is calculated by aggregating by indirect GHG emissions from the use of purchased electricity and thermal energy in each office.

16

Sansan, Inc.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

17

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Material Issues (Priority Issues)
We believe that contributing to resolving social issues through our business activities will contribute to building
a sustainable society, which in turn will lead to our sustainable growth and increase our corporate value. Basedon this belief, we consider a variety offactors in our sustainability initiatives, such as the business environment,
our management performance, and our business stage. We then promote these initiatives in collaboration andcooperation with all stakeholders.

(1)

Area

Material Issues

Metrics and FY2029
Targets *1

Balance Security andConvenience

1. Provide safe
and stableinfrastructure
solutions
2. Ensure robust
protection ofdata privacy
and information
security• Number of major
incidents 0• Proportion of thosequalified as Protectionof Individual Information
Person maintained at
80% or higher

3. Promote
DX services
that improve
productivity
4. Create innovative
business
infrastructure• Number of items
converted from analog
to digital information
using our services *2 500
million• Number of users of ourservices *2 20 million
peopleAlong with convenience, we
are implementing measures toensure our employees maintaindata privacy and information
security, thereby providing society
with highly safe and stable
services.

Transform Work ThroughInnovative Digital
Transformation Services(2)

To become business
infrastructure, we will leverage
our strengths in digitization todevelop and provide innovative
digital transformation (DX)services that significantly improvesocial and economic productivity.

Respect Employee Diversity
and Producing Innovation(3)

To produce innovation thathelps solve business challenges
through the power of encounters,
we promote the creation andprovision of opportunities andenvironments for our diverse
workforce to enjoy success.

5. Promote therecruitment,
development, andsuccess of humanresources
6. Promote diversity,
equity andinclusion• Proportion of recruitment
through referrals 35%• Unipos *3 posting rate80%
• Ratio of female
employees inmanagement positions
30% or higher• Ratio of female
employees: 45% or higher

RelatedSDGs

Material Issue Owner

Sansan, Inc.

Chika Terada

Re p re s e n t a t i v e D i re c t o r &C EO( → P 1 0 C EO M e s s a g e)

Process for Identifying Material Issues
Process for Identifying Materialities ー 1

Process for Identifying Materialities ー 2

Process for Identifying Materialities ー 3

Selection of Materiality Candidates
We have selected materialities of high relevanceby referring to the Sustainability AccountingStandards Board (SASB) guidelines and theSDGs, as well as through dialog and discussion
between our Board members and institutional
investors.

Assessing the Importance of Materialities
Our directors assessed each of the materialities
selected through process (1) along two axes:
importance to society (stakeholders) for
achieving sustainability, and importance to ourcompany for achieving our vision and businessgrowth.

Discussions and Decisions by the Board of
Directors
The Board of Directors discussed and deliberated
the results of the evaluation in process (2) andidentified 10 materialities organized into 5 areas.

External Expertʼs Comments on Sansanʼs Material Issues
Kenji Shiomi

Director, Executive Officer, CISO,
DPO, Engineering Division Head
( → P62 CISO, DPO, Engineering
Division Head Message)

Kei Tomioka

Director, Executive Officer, COO(→P40 COO Message)

Executive Director
Investment Banking Business
Development Dept.
Sustainable Finance Dept.
NOMURA SECURITIES CO., LTD.

M i n o r u H a ya s h i d a , Ph . D.
Yuta Ohma

Director, Executive Officer, CHRO(→P52 CHRO Message)*1 Results and targets presented here are for the Company on a non-consolidated basis. *2 Results for the Companyʼs services are aggregated for Sansan, Bill One, Contract One,and Eight. *3 Unipos is a service centered on the peer bonus system provided by Unipos Inc.

18

We will promote conservation of
the environment by addressing
climate change issues throughour business activities, including
promoting DX, supporting
paperless work, and introducing
environmentally friendly
solutions.

Data

FY2029 Targets for Material Issues (Priority Issues)• Scope 1+2 carbon
neutral• Number of uses of
paperless functions in
our services *4 120 million

Conserve the Environment
Through Business(5)

supervision, we examine and track progress on initiatives
to achieve our targets. Important matters are discussed
and decided on by the Board of Directors.
We will strive to resolve these issues through ourcore business, thereby contributing to achieving theUnited Nations SDGs and, consequently, to building asustainable society.

9. Address climatechange issues
10. Use natural
capital efficiently

Muneyuki HashimotoD i re c t o r, E xe c u t i v e O f f i c e r,
CFO
( → P 3 2 C F O M e s s a g e)

Governance

In June 2022, our Board of Directors identified
key material issues (priority issues) regarding theenvironment, society, and governance. In 2023, we set
quantitative targets for these issues for FY2029. Our
directors took on the role of material issue owners foreach priority area, clarifying responsibility for addressingthese challenges. Under each material issue ownerʼs

To support our growth, we will
strengthen corporate governanceand ensure compliance toreinforce our management
structure.

• Ratio of female Directors
30% or higher• Number of significant
compliance violations 0• Proportion of employees
receiving compliancerelated training 100%

Strategies

Initiatives for Material Issues (Priority Issues)(4)

Strengthen
corporate
governance
8. Ensurecompliance

7.

Story

Establish a Firm Management
Structure to Support Rapid
Business Growth

To address low labor productivity in Japan, based on its corporate
philosophy of “Turning encounters into innovation,” Sansan, Inc. has
set out a value creation narrative to achieve its vision to “Become
business infrastructure.” Specifically, through its business modelof encounters combined with turning analog into digital, it aims togenerate social impacts such as digital transformation for society andhighly productive corporate activities. Given efforts over the past year
to advance materiality initiatives, Sansan can perhaps now convey
its value creation narrative to stakeholders with greater specificity
and clarity. There is a good balance between the companyʼs uniquematerial issues directly linked to creating social impact and thosethat are management foundations. Setting material issue owners
and ambitious targets/indicators ensures initiatives stay effective.
Addressing the material issue of “Create innovative business
infrastructure,” can make this an important issue for both Sansan andgreater society, bringing the company closer to realizing its vision andimproving labor productivity in Japan. I look forward to this.

*4 Scope 1 is calculated by aggregating direct GHG emissions from our own offices and facilities. Scope 2 is calculated by aggregating by indirect GHG emissions from the use ofpurchased electricity and thermal energy in each office.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Value Creation Model
We are committed to addressing challenges in society by channeling both human and intellectual resources intoa unique business model, anchored by our mission, material issues (priority issues), and management structure.
This commitment has spurred us to introduce digitally transformative solutions that reshape how businesses andprofessionals work. Through these endeavorsʼ impacts and the value they bring to society, we strive to achieve ourvision and establish a virtuous cycle that enables continuous and sustainable value creation.

P2 Corporate Philosophy

Corporate Philosophy

P44 Business Strategies by Segment

Mission

OutputTurning encounters into innovation

Cloud-based solutions that promote
digital transformation andreshape how we work

P22
Management
Resources

Input

OutcomeManagement
Resources

Results We Deliver

P24 Business Model

Financial
CapitalSocial Issues/
External
Environment

Business ModelSound Financial
Structure

Material Issues(Priority Issues)

Recognition andCredibilityof Services

Human Capital• Low productivity in sales
activities due to inefficient
information collection andmanagement and the lackof data utilization• Addressing new tasks
related to changes in laws
and new tax systems• Analog workflows thathinder realization ofdiverse work styles

20

Sansan, Inc.

Natural Capital
Conservation of the
Natural Environment
Through Business
Activities

2

Transform Work ThroughInnovative Digital
Transformation Services

3

Respect Employee Diversity
and Producing Innovation

4

Establish a Firm
Management Structure to
Support Rapid Business
Growth5Conserve the Environment
Through BusinessSocial Capital
Expanding Value
Provided ThroughServices

Analog to
DigitalIntellectual
CapitalBalance Security andConvenience

Increased
Economic Value×Diverse, Talented
Workforce

1

Financial
CapitalEncounters

P18 Material Issues

Social Capital

Technology for
Digitizing
Analog Information

P22
Results We Deliver

Human Capital

VisionBecome business
infrastructure

Organization with
Diverse Workforce

Intellectual
CapitalUnrivaled Competitive
Advantages

Valu
es

Management
Structure

se
i
m
e
r
P

Natural Capital
Environmental
Contributions

P80 Corporate Governance

P88 Compliance

P68 Information Security

P90 Risk Management

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Story

Management Resources andthe Results We Deliver
Investing an array of resources, such as talented staff and advanced technology, into our business model to address
our material issues (priority issues) has produced many benefits, including increased economic value. Resources
required for further growth, corresponding actions, and related material issues by capital type are given below.

Financial CapitalSound Financial Structure• Total assets 31,200 million yen• Cash and deposits 21,114 million yen• Shareholder capital 12,454 million yen

Management Resources

Related Material Issues(Priority Issues)• Consolidated employees 1,399• Employees in STEM divisions *5 420• Unipos usage *6• Initiatives for raising security awareness

Natural Capital

Technology for Digitizing Analog
Information

Initiatives to Reduce
Environmental Impact• Digitization with 99.9% accuracy• AI and image recognition technology• Providing paperless functionality in our solutions• “Scan for Trees” tree-planting activities

Our ongoing TV advertising since 2013 has secured
high recognition for Sansan among B2B services
in Japan. Meanwhile, our solutionsʼ operational
performance has earned us a high degree of trustfrom user companies.

Human resources are the foundation for creating
value. Accordingly, we strive to strengthen ourtalent recruitment. In visualizing cases that werecommended within the company, we help to instill our
corporate culture and boost employee engagement.
Additionally, our information security measuresrequire all employees to acquire Personal Information
Protection Specialist qualification.

Our solutions share a common strength in the formof our technology for rapidly and highly accurately
digitizing analog information. And we will further
improve our digitization mechanisms by developing
and refining AI and image recognition technologies.
We can then apply this strength to different businessfields, helping to further expand our own business.

We work to address climate change, efficient use ofnatural capital, and other issues through businessactivities such as promoting digital transformation,
supporting paperless processes, and introducing
environmentally friendly solutions.

Increased Economic Value

Increasing the Value of Our Services• Analog data items digitized by our solutions *1
190 million• Total users *1 5.73 million• Total subscriptions *2 approx. 14,000• Sansan has the top market share *3• Bill One has the top market share *4• Major incidents 0

Organization with Diverse
Workforce

Unrivaled Competitive
Advantages

Environmental Contributions• Net sales 25,510 million yen• Compound annual growth rate for net sales over 5
years 28.3%• Gross profit margin 85.6%• Referral hiring rate 12.0%• Unipos posting rate *6 59.6%• Female managers *7 17.8%• Female employees *7 34.9%• Proportion of those qualified as Protection ofIndividual Information Person *7 88.0%• Analog data items digitized by our solutions *2 190

Our consolidated net sales reached record highs,
owing to Sansanʼs solid growth and Bill Oneʼs highgrowth, resulting in a 28.3% five-year average annual
growth rate. Meanwhile, our gross profit margin
remained in the mid-80% range, owing to cost
reductions such as business operation innovations
and related actions.

We aim to provide digital transformation solutions
that reshape how people work, and our efforts tostrengthen our solutionsʼ functionality and expand
sales have led to 190 million analog data items
digitized and 5.73 million total users. Both Sansan andBill One have steadily increased subscriptions andacquired the top market share in Japan.

By strengthening our recruitment and trainingof diverse staff members through referral hiring(employeesʼ introduction of candidates) and otherinitiatives, we have built an organization with ahigh level of expertise in SaaS sales and marketing.
Additionally, our respect for diversity and efforts toimprove the work environment have resulted in our
personnel containing 17.8% female managers and34.9% female employees.

Our efforts to research and develop the technologies
that support our digitization mechanisms haveincreased our automatic digitization rate throughtechnology alone, while expanding our solutions
has led to 190 million analog data items digitizedthrough our solutions. We also engage in researchand development related to using business data, andwe have acquired various patents that heighten oursolutionsʼ competitive advantages.

Expanding our solutions and promoting the use ofenvironmentally friendly features has led to 10 million
paperless transactions on our solutions. And in aneffort to enrich the natural environment, including
forests and water, we plant trees in disaster-affectedareas in Japan, with 14,787 trees planted as of
September 2023.

While we have secured sufficient funding for ourcurrent operations, new business creation or
aggressive use of M&A strategies may require
funding exceeding the current cash reserves,
causing shortages. We therefore must enable flexible
fundraising to strengthen our financial base.

Although no critical incidents have occurred with oursolutions to date, handling important business datarequires continually improving service credibility.
We therefore are thoroughly strengthening risk
management and response measures across oursolutions, especially information security. At the sametime, our marketing aims to boost recognition of
Sansan and its brands.

While our growth thus far has been supported byhuman talent, realizing further growth will require
hiring more outstanding human resources. We plan tohire around 420 people in FY2023, and we treat this asan urgent management priority.

Expanding solutions, including overseas, and creating
new ones, requires not only enhancing existing
technology but also acquiring new technology. We
therefore are working to improve our recruitment
efforts and work environments to attract engineering
talent with experience and knowledge in a variety offields.

While our GHG emissions are low compared withother industries, given our business model and thenature of our sector, our emissions may rise withbusiness expansion. We therefore will undertake
initiatives to achieve carbon neutrality and increase
the positive impact on the environment through wider
adoption of our solutions.

• Promote DX services that improve productivity• Create innovative business infrastructure• Promote DX services that improve productivity• Create innovative business infrastructure• Provide safe and stable infrastructure solutions• Ensure robust protection of data privacy andinformation security• Strengthen corporate governance• Ensure compliance• Promote the recruitment, development, and successof human resources• Promote diversity, equity and inclusion• Ensure robust protection of data privacy andinformation security• Provide safe and stable infrastructure solutions• Ensure robust protection of data privacy andinformation security• Address climate change issues• Use natural capital efficiently• Promote DX services that improve productivity• Create innovative business infrastructure

Data

Resource Shortages andCountermeasures• Strong brand recognition of Sansan• Credibility of our services

Diverse, Talented Workforce

Intellectual Capital

To maximize sales growth, we are building a soundfinancial structure suited to our current businessphase that requires agile and proactive investment
to capture growth opportunities. We are executing
appropriate investment strategies while maintaining
a stable balance between business growth andfinancial health.

OutcomeResults We Deliver

Recognition and Credibility ofServices

Human Capital

Governance

Input

Social Capital

Strategies

Capital Typemillion• Rate of automatic digitization of analog
information• Patents 10 (38 pending)• Paperless transactions on our solutions *1
10 million• Scope 1+2 GHG emissions *8 851 t-CO2• Total trees planted 14,787 (as of September 2023)*1 Aggregated results for Sansan, Bill One, Contract One, and Eight *2 Total number of paid subscriptions for Sansan, Bill One, Contract One, and Eight Team *3 Latest Trends in Business Card Management Services in Sales Support DX 2023 (December 2022, Seed Planning, Inc., survey; in Japanese) *4 Deloitte Tohmatsu MIC Research Institute, “The Present and Future of the Market of Online Invoice Receiving Solution Expected to Grow at a
Staggering Rate” (MIC IT Report, July 2022) *5 Employees in STEM divisions include employees in engineering, R&D, and creator positions, including regular employees and contract employees of the Company and its subsidiary, Sansan Global Pte. *6 We use a peer bonus platform service provided by Unipos Inc. The platform involves all employees.
*7 Results are for the Company on a non-consolidated basis. *8 Scope 1 is calculated by aggregating direct GHG emissions from our own offices and facilities. Scope 2 is calculated by aggregating by indirect GHG emissions from the use of purchased electricity and thermal energy in each office.

22

Sansan, Inc.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Business Model

A Shared Business Model

Analog to Digital*1 “Latest Trends in Business Card Management Services for Sales Support DX 2023,” December
2022, Seed Planning, Inc.
*2 Deloitte Tohmatsu MIC Research Institute Co., Ltd., “Cloud Invoice Receiving Services Market
Expected to Grow at a Staggering Rate: Current and Future,” MIC IT Report, July 2022

Data

Sales DX

Governance×

business. Our technologies for quickly and accurately
digitizing analog information can be applied acrossbusiness domains and represent our greatest competitive
advantage. Since we began, we have faced this
digitization challenge head-on, refining our technologies
to achieve both speed and 99.9% accuracy when
digitizing data. Our namesake Sansan solution has grown
to lead *1 the market for business card management
services for corporations. Bill One, launched in 2020, hasalso gained top market share for cloud invoice receiving
solutions. *2
Many social issues in Japan arise from relianceon analog processes. While companies are urgently
pursuing solutions through DX, substantial inefficiency
remains in workflows. The significant room for efficiency
gains through digitization means our business model,
underpinned by technology for digitizing analog
information, is highly sustainable.

Strategies

Encounters

We provide digital transformation(DX) solutions that turn
encounters between businesspeople and companies
into business opportunities and reshape how people
work. Specifically, we offer solutions in a wide rangeof areas, such as sales, billing, and contracting, alloperating under a shared business model. Per our
corporate mission, each of these solutions is centeredon business-related encounters between people andcompanies. Our solutions digitize myriad types of analog
information resulting from these encounters, such as
corporate information, customer contact information,and documents generated in billing and contracts, andpromote their use as data. In this way, our solutions help
companies and businesspeople improve operational
efficiency and boost productivity.
We deliver this value through a unique approachcombining cloud software with a technique for digitizing
analog information using both technology and humanresources. All our solutions operate under stringent
security measures, with our track record of service safety
and trustworthiness as an important foundation of ourStory

Our business model is focused on encounters between businesspeople and companies. A key characteristic of thismodel is its ability to solve various business-related issues, such as improving operational efficiency and boostingproductivity, through digitizing analog information and promoting use of the resulting data. Japan still relies on
analog and inefficient processes in many different business situations. Given this, our business model is highly
versatile and can be applied to many different business fields.

Accounting DX
Main Solutions and Optional Features We Offer
Service/Option(Year Launched)Business card

Legal DX

Contract

Sansan, Inc.

Analog Processes to Optimize

Sansan sales DX solution(2007)

Corporate sales activities• Managing paper businesscards• Utilizing and managing
scattered contact information• Business cards• Emails• Website inquiries• Seminars• Phone callsBill One cloud-based invoice
management solution(2020)

Corporate invoicing-related
operations• Operations involving paper
invoices• Compliance with laws andregulations• Invoices

Bill One Business Card
(2023)

Corporate credit card payment
operations• Operations involving paper
receipts• Compliance with laws andregulations• Receipts when making credit
card payments• Credit card statement
information

Contract One contract database(2022)

Corporate contract document
operations• Operations involving paper
contracts• Compliance with laws andregulations• Contracts documents

Eight business card app(2012)

Individual business activities• Managing paper business
cards• Managing personal network• Business cards

InvoiceBusiness card DX

Business card

Digitally Transform How People Work
24

Business Domain

Analog Information Digitized

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Image Recognition Technology

Mechanisms and Technologies for Digitizing Analog Information

Analog Information Digitization Flow
Rapid and accurate digitization of large volumes of analog information

Sansan Taro

Sansan Taro
abc@sansan.com

Sansan Taro
abc@sansan.com

Sansan Taro
Sansan Taro
abc@sansan.com

abc@sansan.com

abc@sansan.com

Japanese

Smart capture

Item segmentation

Language detection

Mistake detector

Technology enabling delivery of results tousers within seconds of image capture

Identifying fields from business card
designs without reading text

Determining the language without
reading text

Learns error patterns to predictthe possibility of mistakes

NineOCR (OCR Engine Optimized for Business Cards)

Matching Names

Our proprietary OCR technology digitizes email addresses at 99.7%
or higher accuracy. Development is underway for full business card
applicability.

This technology organizes data by identifying and consolidating
information for people with the same name or company.

Humans:Final check

Automatic and manual
data entry of images

Cycle for many years since our foundation

部長

Sansan Taro

三三 太郎

Automatic sorting tooperators

Integration
abc@sansan.com
https://jp.sansan.com

Proprietaryname-matching engine
Sansan Data Hub

ASABA

Duplicate
data

Image processing
technology

Diverse network of data
entry operators

A F T E R

Data

Automatic language
detection

B E F O R E

Database

Combination of technologies
Automatic detection andmicro-tasking of information

SFA/CRM/MA

SansanHumans: Manual entry

abc@sansam.com

EnglishGovernance

AI: Data entry

abc@sansan.com

Sansan Taro+

Large volumes ofanalog information

三ミ 太郎

Taro Sansan

Sansan Taro
abc@sansan.com

Strategies

used optical character recognition (OCR) system toindependently achieve 99.9% accuracy. Our operational
structure digitizes large volumes of analog information
accurately, quickly, and at a low cost. This involves
boosting the ratio of automated digitization throughour own AI research and development, while creating aflow that efficiently integrates the power of hundreds ofthousands of human operators.

Story

Our solutions such as Sansan, Bill One, and Contract
One digitize many types of analog (i.e., paper-based)
information, such as business cards, invoices, andcontracts. We achieve this by combining AI technology,
evolved through means such as machine learning, withmanual input. Human intervention is always needed
to supplement accuracy because it is difficult for not
only our proprietary technology but also any widely

We use proprietary image recognition technology and AI to digitize analog information rapidly and with high accuracy.

Up-to-date andaccurate data

Extracting Items from Documents (Invoices and Contracts)- R&D and System Development Underpinning Highly Accurate Digitization
The accurate digitization of business cards in Sansan andcard digitization capabilities to expand into other areas

Eight is enabled by AI research as well as optimization

with Bill One, Contract One, and other solutions, with theof operational flows, system development, and otheraim of establishing advanced digitization workflows forinnovations generated by our R&D and digitization

various kinds of documents.

When digitizing invoices and contracts, we use information-extraction technology tailored to the unique text and layouts of such documents,
increasing automated digitization rates.

1 Structuring

2 Graphing

3 GNN*3

Tag

Extractionofinvoiceamounts

4 prediction

departments. We are now applying our core business*3 Abbreviation for Graph Neural Network, which learns feature values of elements on a graph and estimates changes.

GEES Business Card Digitization System
This is our unique operation system that securely, accurately, and efficiently digitizes large volumes of business cards.

Technology-Driven Evolution of Digitization Workflow

Sansan Taro

Sansan Taro

Sansan Taro
abc@sansan.com

abc@sansan.com

abc@sansan.com

1

Business card scan or photo

sansa

c@

Ta

Sansan, Inc.

ab

c@

sansa

Classify each item

Company

Sansan, Inc.

Name

Taro Sansan

n.com

ab

4 Intercepted classified items
26

3

ro

+

n.com

2

Image correction

When Sansan was launched, all of our businessorganization, we were able to optimize humancard digitization was done manually, with two

workflows through simplified input and apply AI

operators inputting each card to match data andvia machine learning. Now, Sansanʼs automatedensure accuracy. However, this process lacked

digitization rate has risen to around 80%, and per-the speed to meet rising demand, which in turncard costs have dropped to less than 1/20 of what

limited service growth. By establishing an R&D

they originally were.

abc@sansan.com

5 Input process
ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Social Value

Social Value of Our Services
Story

Our solutions for advancing digital transformation (DX) greatly improve usersʼ productivity. The solutionsʼ positive
impact on society and the economy will be maximized when they are more widely used in business situations andrecognized as essential, in other words, when they function as business infrastructure. Based on this thinking, we
pursue initiatives to continually increase the social value provided through our business activities.

NIPPON EXPRESS CO., LTD.

Material Issues (Priority Issues)

Materiality Targets
FY2029 Target

FY2022 Result

Promote DX services that improve
productivity

Number of items
converted from analog
to digital information
using our services *1

500 million

190 million

Create innovative business
infrastructure

Number of users of ourservices *1

20 million

5.73 million

staff made, by combining the more than one
million corporate data items in Sansan with its
own customer touchpoint data and developing
sales scenarios leveraging internal network
information. Also, with multiple sales contact
points for the same customer across locations,information sharing had been an issue. Using
Sansanʼs reports feature made real-timesharing possible, enabling representatives todiscuss sales strategies based on the latest
information and receive prompt feedback fromtheir superiors.

Data

Transform work throughinnovative DX services

Material Issue

Nippon Express successfully built a datadriven sales framework by sharing customer
and business negotiation information acrosslocations company-wide. Despite recognizing
the importance of using data for effective sales
activities, the company was hindered by a lackof organized internal customer information
management and utilization. It decided to
introduce Sansan for company-wide information
sharing and promoted its utilization under theupper managementʼs commitment. This let thecompany expand the range of proposals its sales

Governanceinfrastructure” as material issues. We have establishedlong-term quantitative targets for FY2029 to addressthese issues, aiming to achieve 500 million analog data
items digitized by our solutions and 20 million users.

Among the five priority areas identified in 2022, under“Transform work through innovative DX services,”
we have defined “Promote DX services that improve
productivity” and “Create innovative business

Area

Strategies- Sansan Implementation Drives Sales Management Transformation*1 Results for the Companyʼs services are aggregated for Sansan, Bill One, Contract One, and Eight.

Visualizing and Monitoring Social ValueOur DX solutionsʼ social impact lies in greatly improving
societal productivity and increasing economic value by
efficiently solving business challenges. However, activities
aimed at socio-economic change have multiple shortand long-term impacts, making comprehensive andaccurate impact measurement difficult. Therefore, guided
by the SDG Compass, etc., we have set “analog data

items digitized by our solutions” (output of service usage)and “users” (service penetration), as proxy indicators forsocial value.
The materiality owners – Director, Executive Officer,
COO – regularly monitor these indicators and discuss
related initiatives.

- Promote DX Services that Improve Productivity
For “Promote DX services that improve productivity,” anissue closely related to our business and unique to ourcompany, we have set “analog data items digitized byour solutions” as the assessment indicator. With 190 million data items achieved in FY2022, we have ambitiously
set 500 million in FY2029.

- Create Innovative Business Infrastructure“Create innovative business infrastructure” represents our

corporate vision itself, making it highly important for us.
We use “users” as the assessment indicator, and achieved

28

Sansan, Inc.

5.73 million users in FY2022. For FY2029, we have an
ambitious aim of 20 million, as we strive to expand ourservice penetration.

- Improving Accounting Operations Through Bill One
Development Bank of Japan Inc.
With a massive volume of paper invoices
received, the Development Bank of Japan(DBJ) introduced Bill One and achieved
productivity improvements. Aiming to improve
operations through digitalization, the company
implemented various operational improvements
but faced challenges with remaining analog
accounting workflows. It received around
20,000 paper invoices annually, and the needto process mailed invoices prevented remote
work and required huge amounts of manual
effort for data entry and visual confirmation in

the organizationʼs system. Looming additional
accounting workload to comply with Japanʼsrevised Electronic Bookkeeping Act and Invoicing
System underscored the need to overhaul
workflows. Moreover, in financial businesses, ahigh level of security is essential. Referencing
Sansanʼs track record, DBJ decided onBill One based on its accuracy in paper invoice
digitization and the solutionʼs trustworthiness. By
using Bill One, DBJ expects to save 4,000 work
hours per year in paper invoice handling.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

29

Chapter 2

Strategies
Chapter 2 presents reflections on the past and explanations on future
growth strategies from our finance, business, human resources, andtechnology leaders. It also covers human capital, information security,and the environment, with details on quantitative targets and initiatives
for related material issues (priority issues).

CONTENTS
P32 - CFO Message
P36 - Medium-Term Management Policy
P38 - Short-Term Results and Plans
P40 - COO Message
P44 - Business Strategies by Segment
P52 - CHRO Message
P56 - Human Capital

30

Sansan, Inc.

P62 - CISO, DPO,
Engineering Division Head Message

02
P66 - R&D

P68 - Information Security
P70 - Environment

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

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03_Governance

Data

Invoicing System is implemented.

established a solid revenue baserenewal and a strengthened sales

We expect large enterprises to bethat can generate profits even if

structure. Bill One nearly tripled

ready for this transition, and we will

we continue to make the necessary

its growth year on year, greatly

closely monitor the situation frominvestments. Our FY2024 goals

surpassing its 3 billion yen ARR

October onward, hoping the system

include 10 billion yen or more intarget, at around 3.8 billion yen.

spreads to small- and medium-combined adjusted operating profit

Although Eightʼs growth was slightly

sized enterprises as well.

for Sansan and Bill One, and stablestalled, contributions from business

The Bill One Business Card, which
we expect to gain momentum going

operating profit positive, steadily

forward, is our first foray into fintech.

reducing the full-year loss.

Taking on credit risk introduces new

Outlook for FY2023

financial considerations, but rather
than being overly conservative,

Under our current asset allocation
approach, cash flows generated byframework to manage a proper

Sansan are allocated to Bill Oneʼsperformance, overall, we are inamount of risk as the businessgrowth. This structure will become

an excellent position for further

scales. Our aim is to provide solid

even clearer as Eight achieves full-acceleration. Accordingly, we

support so that more customers canyear profitability.

forecast year-on-year net sales

use the Bill One Business Card.

Medium-Term Financial
Goals

projecting growth in the 30% range,

MuneyukiHashimoto32

on human resource productivity
and sales efficiency metrics such as

Regarding our medium-term

new orders per sales rep, as well as

expands.

financial goals, last year in thiscustomer lifetime value. With bothreport, I stated that we were still in

metrics now very high, conditions are

personnel to maximize sales,

the first stage of our growth and thatfavorable for investing. In terms of

we continue targeting adjusted

growing net sales was vital. Eveneconomic rationale, we believe that

operating profit growth exceedingwith FY2022 now behind us, growing

accelerating growth investments will

sales growth. Factoring in one-time

net sales will remain our top priority

lead to a dramatic scaling up of ourcosts such as our head office movefor the next few years.

businesses. Regarding recruitment,

and Bill One invoice receipt center

Given our recent robust net

we have set an aggressive target

relocation, we forecast adjusted

sales growth, we have revised ourof approximately 420 hires on aoperating margin to rise by 0.1 to 1.8

medium-term goal for net sales

consolidated basis in FY2023. If order

points year on year.

growth through FY2024 upward

efficiency does not decline with theWe have started to feel Sansanʼs

Review of FY2022

determine asset allocation basedeven as the companyʼs overall size
While aggressively increasing

Director, Executive
Officer, CFO

Our growth investments are mainly
in recruitment and advertising. We

from being in the 20% range orincreased headcount, we intend to

growth acceleration since FY2022,

higher set a year ago to being in thecontinue aggressive recruitment.

and Bill One is also seeing a sharp

mid-20% range or higher.

rise in order increases ahead ofRegarding profit, while sustaining

we will also continue considering

As part of our growth investments,

on sales of investment securities

remained strong. Annual recurringversus the previous year. Profit

revenue (ARR), another key metric,

Japanʼs Invoicing System launch insteady and robust net sales growth,

M&A and minority investments

we are seeking to improve ouras opportunities arise. Although

For FY2022, our consolidated net

attributable to owners of the parent

also showed strong growth, at 28.3%.

October 2023. As with the Bill One

sales rose 24.9% year on year, toamounted to 141 million yen net loss,

Achieving our net sales growthBusiness Card launched in June

adjusted operating profit rates

not large allocations, recently we25,510 million yen, and adjusted

due mainly to recording a loss on

forecast disclosed at the beginning

2023, we will continue our productsʼ

each fiscal year, aiming to achieve

invested in CREATIVE SURVEY INC.

operating profit climbed 28.9%, tovaluation of investment securitiesof the fiscal year and maintaining

evolution by adding options thatboth sales and profit growth.

in March 2023 and in Institute of

942 million yen. These were solid

as an extraordinary loss. Althoughadjusted operating profit growth

improve user convenience. While weThis demonstrates our strong

Language Understanding Inc. inresults overall. Ordinary profit fell

we posted a net loss, the causes

exceeding net sales growth indicates

do not currently perceive any major

determination to steadily grow

June 2023. For CREATIVE SURVEY, we

87.4%, to 122 million yen, due towere one-time factors, and both net

we maintained firm control of ourconcerns or risks in our business,

the top line and maintain profit

aim to drive growth by combining

factors such as higher share-based

sales and adjusted operating profit,

finances.

we cannot yet fully predict how thegrowth rates even as we continue toits corporate survey system andpayment expenses and lower gains

which reflect business fundamentals,

order pace will change after theinvest for growth. We have alreadyother SaaS businesses with our

Sansan, Inc.

Sansan delivered steady 15.0%

Data

3 years, we are positive about again

Governancewe will consider establishing a

After being in the 20% range the past

Establishing a Sound
Fnancial Structure to Support
Reigniting Growth

Asset Allocation and
Growth Investment

With strong FY2022 businessgrowth of 28.0% to 32.0% for FY2023

CFO Message

profitability for Eight.
Strategies

events turned its Q4 adjusted

Story

net sales growth through product

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

33

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Returns to Shareholders

creating a logical narrative. Afterof Language Understanding,bringing a company into our group,

We understand shareholder

we plan to maximize future

we proactively dispatch executives

expectations for returns arebusiness value by incorporating its

and pursue business collaborations

increasing as we achieve profit

knowledge database and language

and joint projects for smooth post-

growth. Shareholder returns areunderstanding engine into features

merger integration. We also promote

an important management issue

and operations within our solutions.

measures that help make the target

for us, and I constantly consider

company more efficient, such as

the best way to maximize returns

partially integrating back-officeto our shareholders in formulating

operations.

financial strategy. As I described,

Approach to M&A andMinority Investment

our present growth stage presents

Fundraising

M&A and minority investment areopportunities where accelerating

firmly committed to achieving this.

(millions of yen)
■ Cash flows from Investing Activities

1,072

met our current targets, and we

11,563■ Cash flows from Financing Activities

3,132 2,822

believe it is essential to maintain this

-7,189FY2019FY2018

3,123

3,011

-2,282909

level through system development

3,848
523

-551
-2,902-1,014

1,364

FY2020

FY2021

FY2022and various initiatives.

Dialogue with
Stakeholders
We are one of Japanʼs largest

Consolidated Net Sales to Adjusted Operating Profit *1

SaaS companies. As a forerunner(millions of yen)entire leadership team carefully

As of the end of May 2023, we had

exponential business growth. We

assesses each deal and makes

approximately 21 billion yen in cash

believe allocating funds generated

investment decisions. Key points

on hand and we are generatingfrom business expansion toin assessing a targetʼs potential

sufficient operating cash flow,

further growth investments will

Advertising Expenses

include acceleration of new orders

ensuring the funds required for

maximize shareholder value by

Other SG&A Expenses

and low churn rate as indicated bybusiness operations. Our recognition

strengthening our financial position

MRR growth. We scrutinize expected

and credibility have also risen, andand maintaining stability while

mutual synergies from combining

our fundraising environment is

expanding our business. For now,

the target with our technology,

better than ever, based on a soundas we are in a growth investment

expertise, brand, and other assets,financial structure including financial

phase, we will consider returns toas well as quantitative impacts

liquidity and robust performance.

shareholders, such as dividends, as

on our financial statements andWhile prioritizing balance sheet

a medium-to-long-term issue.

financial risks if made a groupsoundness in our financial strategy,

representing Japanʼs SaaS industry,

FY2022Net Sales
Cost of Sales
Personnel Expenses

25,510we highly value a pioneering spirit of

3,683

delivering unprecedented solutions

8,349

and products and take pride in
driving our business forward.

3,306

Since going public in 2019, we

9,229

Adjusted Operating Profit

have been actively engaged in

942

investor relations with institutional(millions of yen)
■ Total Assets

31,20024,31022,819meetings per quarter. Throughthese, we have firmly communicated26,292that we are not just a business card

■ Net Assets

12,584

10,5529,079

investors, holding around 100

12,093

13,190and contact management company,
given the rapid growth of the BillOne business. More stakeholders

if additional funding needs arisein place, there is no need to retain

individually and carefully, includingfrom large M&A deals that could

excessive standby funds, considering

exit and divestment conditions.

accelerate our growth or steep

the efficiency of capital costs. We

We may consider a target as an

expansion of the Bill One Businessexpect Bill One, our current focus

investment candidate without near-

Card service going forward, along

for investment, to achieve steady

term synergies from M&A if we seewith using our own funds, we willprofitability soon if current trends

potential to scale as a SaaS business.

flexibly determine the optimal

continue. When that happens,

However, in considering making afinancing methods, including

we will discuss our capital policy

strategy, financial conditions, andalso made major progress in

expectations of investors both intarget a group company, it is alsoborrowing from financial institutions

including shareholder returns based

business environment.

developing a system to strengthen

Japan and overseas, we will continue

important that it should contributeand equity financing.

on the groupʼs overall growth

governance with the introduction

blazing trails into new markets as aof variable compensation forleading Japanese SaaS company.

August 2020

Sansan, Inc.

Data

Total Assets, Net Assets *1

company. We discuss possible deals

logmi, Inc.

Governance

growth investment can lead toWith our fundraising environment

Regarding compliance, we have

■ Cash flows from Operating Activities

vital topics for management. Our

Track Record of Group Companies

34

30% or higher by FY2029. We are

Cash Flow *1Strategies

to achieving our mission and vision,

owned technology. With Institute

Storysales and marketing expertise and3,372

now have a better understandingof our intellectual capital, such as

FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021

FY2022

our technology for digitizing analog
information, which lets us provide*1 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31.

not only Sansan but also Bill One.
With confidence from theStrengthening Governanceand Ensuring Compliancedirectors, an increased numberof independent directors,

Diamond Corporate
Data Services, Inc.

August 2021

CREATIVE SURVEY INC.

March 2023

Institute of Language
Understanding Inc.

June 2023

Among our material issues

establishment of a Nomination and(priority issues), Iʼm responsible for

Remuneration Advisory Committee,

strengthening corporate governanceand enhancement of Complianceand ensuring compliance.

Committee structure. To further

While identifying material issues

strengthen our governance structure,through internal discussions, we

we concluded that diversity needs

reconfirmed some practices alreadyto be expanded and set a target of

implemented but not formallyraising the ratio of female Board

systemized. In the past year, wemembers from the current 22% toMuneyuki Hashimoto
Director, Executive Officer, CFO

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

35

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Medium-Term Management Policy

Continued consolidated net sales growth of mid-20% range or higher

Eight Business

Recording adjusted operating profit of ¥10 billion+ for
Sansan and Bill One in FY2024 (excluding “ Others ” inSansan/Bill One Business segment)

Recording stable adjusted operating profit for full year

Achieving net sales and profit growth is our mediumterm target for FY2022 to FY2024.
We aim to first maintain solid growth at or above themid-20% range for consolidated net sales, our mostcritical management indicator. Previously, our target for
consolidated net sales for FY2022 to FY2024 was growthin the 20% range or higher, but we revised this target
given our robust performance in FY2022. We have also
adopted adjusted operating profit, *1 which excludes
share-based payment expenses and expenses arisingfrom business combination, as a key profit indicator. We
aim to improve our adjusted operating profit margins
each consolidated fiscal year while making necessary
investments for sales growth in each business segment.
To improve profitability, we are aiming at adjusted
operating profit of 10 billion yen or more combined for
Sansan and Bill One *2 in FY2024, and stable full-period
adjusted operating profit for Eight.
*1 Operating Profit + Share-based Payment Expenses + Expenses Arising from Business
Combinations (amortization of goodwill and amortization of intangible assets)*2 Excluding “Others” in Sansan/Bill One Business segment

36

Sansan, Inc.

From Analog to Digital- Including paper, analog business flows remain,
and thus there is substantial room for optimization
through digitization- Ample Market Opportunity and a Highly Stable Revenue ModelGreater remote work, DX, and interest in SaaS continue
to expand our market. The DX market is expected toreach 5,195.7 billion yen in 2030 (up 3,813.6 billion yen
from 2020), *3 and the domestic SaaS market is expected
to reach 1,668.1 billion yen in 2026 (up 579.0 billion yen
from 2022). *4
Paper business cards, invoices, and contracts are still
used, leaving significant room for more efficient andeffective operations. All our services have substantial
potential. Sansan has an 81.6% *5 market share forcorporate contact management services, but only
about 3% *6 of Japanʼs working population as users.
Bill One enjoys the marketʼs top share of sales foronline invoice receiving solutions, but only 1,581 paid
subscriptions, leaving ample room for expansion. BillOneʼs subscription-based invoice network, including freesubscribers and companies that invoice them, comprises

contribute to overall company profit growth early on. In
addition, securing outstanding talent, addressing security
risks, and enhancing technical capabilities are positioned
as company-wide initiatives. We are also working toachieve discontinuous growth by creating newservices centered on our mission and competitive
advantages.

only approx. 90,000 Japanese companies as of May 31,
2023, about 4% *6 of the total, suggesting considerable
growth potential.
Sansanʼs and Bill Oneʼs monthly subscription-based
billing models are expected to generate ongoing revenue
with stable and continuous growth. Each has an averagemonthly churn rate below 1.0% over the last 12 months,
letting us maximize customer lifetime value by increasing
sales per contract.

*3 Based on Market Edition and Vendor Strategy Edition of 2022 Outlook of theDigital Transformation Market by Fuji Chimera Research Institute*4 Based on 2022 New Software Business Markets by Fuji Chimera ResearchInstitute*5 Based on Latest Trends in Business Card Management Services in Sales
Support DX 2023 (December 2022, survey by Seed Planning, in Japanese)*6 Based on Economic Census for Business Activity in 2021 issued by the Statistics Bureau as the denominator.

- Recruiting and Training Talent and Ensuring Diversity
To achieve sustainable growth, we must hire talented
professionals with diverse experience, and improve oursales, development, and managerial structures. We will
create environments and systems that motivate talented

human resources that share our philosophy and businessvision. We will also ensure diversity among our humanresources.

- Strengthening of Management Systems for Security Risks
We continuously strengthen our information
management systems to protect the many personaland other important information assets we handle. We
diligently implement protection measures, such as strict

Management Strategy
We formulate and execute strategies for each businessbased on key management indicators. For the Sansan/
Bill One Business, given the vast potential market size,
we are currently prioritizing maximizing sales revenue
while envisioning medium-term profit maximization. For
the Eight Business, on the other hand, we operate with agreater focus on profitability, aiming for the business to

Point 2

Data

Sansan/Bill One Business- Focusing on person-to-person, company-to-company
encounters

GovernanceImprovement of adjusted consolidated profit margin in each fiscal year

Encounters

Strategies

Key Management Indicators and Medium-Term Targets

Point 1Story

Our medium-term financial targets aim to maximize shareholder and corporate value for FY2022 to FY2024. Our
targets are based on our current business phases. To achieve them, we will harness our management resources tothe fullest and advance growth strategies to maximize each business. Hiring top talent and addressing security risks
are among the measures to fortify our management foundation.

Focal Points in Our Service Development

management of information assets, based on personal
information protection and information security policies,
and will continue to reinforce and improve our systems
and management.

- Enhancing Technological Strengths
As accurate digitization technology drives ourcompetitiveness and is the common foundation forour servicesʼ growth, we must continually improve andstrengthen it. We will hire talented engineers and invest
in and monitor advanced technologies to improve ourtechnological abilities and build a top engineering team.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

37

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Short-Term Results and Plans
In the first year of our three-year medium-term plan through FY2024, we addressed growth strategies including
product renewal of Sansan in FY2022, achieving our initial consolidated net sales and adjusted operating profit
plans, and making steady progress toward medium-term targets. In the second year, FY2023, we will aim to reignite
consolidated sales growth and achieve stable profit growth by maximizing Sansan and Bill One sales.

FY2023 Plans
Forecasts for FY2022(millions of yen)

Official
Announcement

Full-Year Results for FY2022

YoY

Results

FY2022

YoY(millions of yen)

25,510+24.9%

21,998 to 22,632+21.5% to +25.0%

22,516+24.4%

Sansanーー

19,793+15.0%

Bill One

ー

ー

2,414

+192.2%2,900 to 3,010+31.0% to +36.0%

2,867+29.5%

Sansan/Bill One Business

Eight Business*1

917 to 1,288+25.5% to +76.3%

942+28.9%

Adjusted Operating Profit
Margin

3.7% to 5.0%

+0.1 pts. to +1.4 pts.

3.7%

+0.1 pts.

- Financial Results
Our FY2022 plans targeted consolidated net sales growthof 23.0% to 26.2% year on year and adjusted operating
profit growth of 25.5% to 76.3% with a 0.1 to 1.4-point
rise in adjusted operating margin. We adopted a range
forecast because of the difficulty in accurately predicting
the impact of the Sansan product renewal, although thiseffect was partly incorporated, and set a reasonablemaximum and minimum.
Actual FY2022 results were consolidated net sales up
24.9% year on year and gross profit up 21.9% (85.6% grossprofit margin), a solid performance overall.

38

Sansan, Inc.

Full-Year Forecasts

YoY

25,510+24.9%

32,653 to 33,674+28.0% to +32.0%

22,516+24.4%

29,046 to 29,835+29.0% to +32.5%

Sansan19,793+15.0%

22,664 to 22,861+14.5% to +15.5%

Bill One

2,414+192.2%

5,673 to 6,156+135.0% to +155.0%

Sansan/Bill One Business

Eight Business

2,867+29.5%

3,153 to 3,354+10.0% to +17.0%

*1

942

+28.9%

1,240 to 1,852+31.7% to +96.6%

Adjusted Operating Profit
Margin3.7%+0.1 pts.

3.8% to 5.5%

+0.1 pts. to +1.8 pts.

Adjusted Operating Profit- Financial Plans
Adjusted consolidated operating profit rose 28.9%,
mainly owing to sales growth, with a 0.1-point increase
year on year in the adjusted consolidated operating
margin, to 3.7%, aligning with our forecast range andmedium term financial targets. For our main solutions,Sansan recovered sales productivity and new orders
from Q2 with the renewal, delivering steady results. BillOne greatly exceeded initial growth assumptions withstrengthened sales and improved functionality. For Eight,
however, lower-than-expected recruitment services
results led us to shift to profitability-focused operations.

- Non-Financial Results
Key FY2022 non-financial outcomes included identifying
material issues (priority issues) and enhancing thedisclosure of sustainability-related information. We
disclosed information on our sustainability initiatives on
our website, ESG data, and TCFD recommendations,which we have endorsed. As a key management
strategy, we strengthened recruitment efforts aimed at
net sales growth, which resulted in 194 more consolidated
employees year on year – a steady increase to 1,399 in

Net Sales

YoY

Data

+23.0% to +26.2%

Consolidated Results

Consolidated Results

25,117 to 25,764

Full-Year Results

FY2023Governance

Net Sales

Adjusted Operating Profit

We forecast a 0.1 to 1.8-point improvement in theadjusted consolidated operating profit margin YoY.
Strategies

FY2022 Results

Story

Accelerating sales growth over the same period in
the previous year, we will aim for 28.0% to 32.0% YoY
growth in consolidated net sales.

total. Compliance-related training completion reached100% for all officers and employees. This resulted from
our initiatives to ensure compliance.
See the following pages for details on other nonfinancial initiatives.
• P56 Human Capital• P66 R&D
• P68 Information Security• P70 Environment• P80 Corporate Governance• P88 Compliance• P90 Risk Management

For FY2023 consolidated net sales, we forecast
acceleration of 3.1 to 7.1 points year on year, to 28.0%
to 32.0% growth, factoring in Sansanʼs steady growthand Bill Oneʼs continued high growth. By segment, weare targeting 29.0% to 32.5% year-on-year net sales
growth for Sansan and Bill One, with sales structureenhancements and feature upgrades to maximize salesof both solutions. These projections include a 14.5% to15.5% year-on-year increase for Sansan and 135.0% to155.0% for Bill One. Although sales growth will slow in the
Eight Business segment with a basic policy focused on
profitability, we anticipate 10.0% to 17.0% growth throughefforts to strengthen popular event services. The adjusted
consolidated operating profit margin is projected at
3.8% to 5.5%, a rise of 0.1 to 1.8 points year on year, owing
to solid sales growth, despite an expected increase in
selling, general, and administrative expenses resulting
from investments for growth. We adopted a range
forecast to reflect a variety of foreseeable scenarios
based on factors such as the status of new orders for
Sansan and Bill One, the level of usage of the Bill One
Business Card, and progress in our recruitment efforts,
which is one of our growth strategies. Accordingly, we set
a reasonable maximum and minimum.

- Non-Financial Plans
We plan to implement full-fledged sustainability
efforts in FY2023. We have already established FY2029
quantitative targets for material issues (priority issues)
and appointed inside directors as owners of each issue.
Personnel strategies include hiring around 420 people
on a consolidated basis while implementing measures

to secure top talent, including increasing the female
employee and manager ratios and raising starting pay.
We will also strengthen non-financial initiatives such as
establishing a Nomination and Remuneration Advisory
Committee to reinforce governance and managing GHG
emissions.

*1 Operating Profit + Share-based Payment Expenses + Expenses Arising from Business Combinations (amortization of goodwill and amortization of intangible
assets)

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

39

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Shift to a Divisional System
Story

In June 2023, the company restructured
its sales system. What prompted thisand what is the new strategy?

Maximizing each business is ourprimary aim. In July 2021, wemoved away from the system ofStrategies

different divisions and consolidated
sales under one unified division,emphasizing resource optimization.
This pivot was driven by the

Aiming to Maximize Each
Product

So, we changed Sansan to make it

decreased the exchange of businessWith last year’s update of Sansan,

activities.

cards. But it was a favorable climate

what is your vision for its future?

struggle faced in new Sansan
sales efforts when the rapid rise of
remote work during the pandemic

Governanceneed for employees to physically

only manage contact information,

as standard, over one million data

come to the office to receive

but also contribute to corporate rev-

items detailing companies and their

invoices. Balancing sales resources

enue creation. We see it evolving into

executives. This helps users researchbecame an issue, and we focuseda sales DX (digital transformation)businesses or individuals they hav-

defensively on client retention

service that utilizes corporate infor-

enʼt interacted with.

with Sansan and on aggressive

mation, as well as business cards,

expansion to meet high demandemails, and other points of contact,

expansion. Post-pandemic, manywith Bill One. So, we reorganized forbased on the concept of “maximiz-business dealings occur without

optimization, believing it better to

ing revenues through business cardbusiness card exchanges, and rely

have flexible resource allocation withmanagement.” This represents aon online discussions and email. So,a standardized sales organization

major shift.

Sansan has now expanded beyond

Data

Sansan, Inc.

a corporate information including,

The second feature is contact point

Before its update, Sansanʼs core

paper business cards, integrating

function was to accurately digitizemeans of contact like emails, calls,

exchanged business cards, allowing

and online seminars, which can beof the fiscal year ended May

users to see who in the company

stored and visualized. Of particular

2023, Sansan saw a recovery fromhad exchanged cards with whom.

note is the email integration feature

the pandemic, achieving record

However, the pandemic changed

released in June 2023. This not only

new orders on a quarterly basis,business practices. Face-to-faceidentifies email correspondents but

aided by a June 2022 productmeetings declined and online inter-also visualizes interaction frequency,

update. With this, we considered

actions increased. Without physicalproviding insights into communica-that Sansan could shift to a morecard exchanges, it became difficulttion depth. This is extremely useful

aggressive stance, like Bill One.

to determine accurate job titles

for planning sales strategies. For

We re-adopted the divisional sales

and contact details, which made it

instance, with Sansan integrated

structure, shifting from a systemharder to act on these encounters.

with customersʼ email servers, users

focused on optimization to one

Simply managing and searching

can share information such as how

aiming for maximization. This was

through paper business cards no

many staff/employee have emailed

with the belief that accelerating bothlonger improved sales efficiency. Wea certain person in a certain com-

products would contribute to overallalso aimed to tackle an old problem:pany, or how many times a certain

growth.

approaching people with whom you

employee has emailed that person.

However, in the fourth quarter

Kei Tomioka40

Our intention is for Sansan to not

system.

Director, Executive Officer,
COO

Two primary features under-needs because it eliminated thethan to stick with the vertical division

COO Message

more useful as a solution for sales

score this transformation. First, itʼsfor Bill One. Bill One met corporate

From Optimization
to Maximization

havenʼt exchanged business cards.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

41

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_GovernanceData

We soon realized that the receipt

ing Act will enter into force, tighten-

of invoices was a bottleneck in thising regulations on the archiving ofutation as a sales DX tool and sales

process, developed our product toelectronic transaction records. As of

database hasnʼt fully permeated theaddress this issue, and successfully

the conclusion of FY2022, Bill One

market. So, thereʼs a pressing needlaunched this as a new business.

er, when considering the number of(priority topics), has ambitious aims

just contact management, and toments handle the organization-wide

companies that send invoices via Billsuch as “digitizing 500 million analog

both prospective and existing cus-receipt of invoices. This sometimes

One, as well as our free users, thedata items” and “reaching 20 million

tomers.

leads to invoices getting lost inter-

Bill One network actually includes

users.” Can you speak to the rationale

nally. Not knowing where an invoicearound 90,000 companies. We

and challenges of these targets?

is, receiving invoices with errors, andaim to expand this network further

spending time following up within search of even greater growth

We are determined to tackle theBill One has experienced strong

each of the people responsible areopportunities. Also, in June 2023, wechallenges faced by society throughgrowth beyond our initial expecta-

some of the common headaches

added the Bill One Business Card,our business, with the broader goal

tions, which is quite encouraging.

faced by accountants in most com-a corporate credit card, as an op-

development. Previously, when sales

Hiroshima. We consider nationwide

of fostering societal sustainability.

We think that weʼve been able topanies.

tion with the Bill One service. Weʼreresources were shared, an individual

expansion and the bolstering ofJapanese industry is still grappling

optimistic about our ability to ex-

salesperson would be responsible

our sales resources to be crucial forwith inefficiencies, low productivity,

achieve such rapid growth because

Bill Oneʼs solution for this is toof Bill Oneʼs ability to address busi-

digitize all invoices, whether they arepand beyond just invoices and makefor not just one of Sansan, Bill One,disseminating our productsʼ value,

and a variety of other issues

ness challenges in accounting andpaper-based or PDFs, at our center,

further inroads into fintech.

and Contract One, but all three,

and we have therefore made talent

stemming from its paper-reliant

offer substantive value. We believe

so that accountants no longer needwhich made training burdensome

sourcing a top priority.

culture. In such an environment,that another reason for its current

to spend their time following up withsuccess is its pioneering role in shap-

the relevant department or indi-International Expansion

ability to support companies ining an entirely new market niche thatvidual. As further benefits, this also

Contract One is still in its earlyof not only accounting but also

is focused on the receipt of invoices.

removes the risk of losing invoices,

stages, where we are working

recent changes to legislation, it was

What is your global strategy?

can be a catalyst for change.

The development of Bill One wasand it ensures a clear trail of every

toward product/market fit. We arechallenging for sales rep to find theirreceived invoice.

currently developing the features

legs. Now, sales personnel can focus

Weʼve made Bill One the current

needed to make it a service

on a single product, which means

focus of our strategy for international

and time-consuming. And sinceBill One requires deep knowledge

weʼre optimistic that our proventransitioning from analog to digital
As part of our corporate
philosophy, we make “Turning
encounters into innovation” ourmade by our internal accounting

We see FY2023 as a major turning

team. The concept was then dis-point, with revisions to Japanese leg-that enables corporate revenue

that they are able to receive more

expansion. Weʼve launched Sansan

cussed over the course of 2–3 years.

islation creating an advantageous

creation by digitizing contracts.

specialized training and this in turnin Singapore and other locations,“Become business infrastructure.”

After analyzing the biggest chal-situation for the use of Bill One.

When it comes to contract-related

allows them to get up to speed more

but the pandemic reduced the

We believe that the more our user

lenges in accounting workflows, weSpecifically, the Invoicing System

work, it is of course important toquickly than before.

identified our primary concern: howwill be started in Japan in Octoberreduce the workload for legal staff

to complete monthly settlements

2023, and then, from January 2024,

quickly and with minimal hassle.

the amended Electronic Bookkeep-

Sansan, Inc.

mission. It is also our vision tofrequency of business cardbase grows, the more new ideas

We can also see clear evidence

exchanges there even more than inand meaningful encounters will beand ensure contract fulfillmentof stronger collaboration between

Japan, making card-centric solutions

generated. We of course recognize

and effectiveness. At the same

sales and marketing, and ourless viable than before.

that these targets are highly

time, however, we believe that

product teams are now bettertransforming important contractaligned with business units, whichBill One in Singapore were better

today. Nevertheless, weʼre convinced

information into a company-wide

accelerates feedback cycles. As wethan expected, and we have evenof the importance of setting boldasset also contributes to enhanced

move forward, weʼll concentrate onreceived inquiries from Thailand.

quantitative targets to have a

corporate performance.

developing features that maximize

About 95% of invoice interactions in

substantial impact on society. We

customer value and enhance theThailand are paper-based. Such aaim to achieve sustained businessappeal of our products to theheavy reliance on paper documents

growth by addressing these material

market.

means that there are many issues

issues (priority issues).

Status of the Business
Units

Data

initially prompted by a proposal

How is Contract One progressing?

GovernanceThe company, in its material issues

Typically, several different depart-

Strategies

had 1,581 paid subscribers. Howev-

to communicate its abilities beyond

What is the strategy for Bill One?

42

Contributing to Societal
Sustainability Through Our
Business

Story

Combining these features, we
rebranded Sansan. However, its rep-

On the other hand, pilot sales ofOn the sales side, there is still

for which Bill One offers a solution,

Having discussed the sales system

potential that we have yet to tap

and our strategy is to first focus on

renewal and product evolution, where

into, especially in terms of regionaltargeting Japanese companies that

does each stand now?

expansion. In Japan, in addition

are operating in Thailand. We also

to our existing footholds in Tokyo,

see significant potential elsewhere

Our sales system overhaul

Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka, weʼvein Southeast Asia, especially among

has yielded benefits for staff

now established a sales office inthe countries in Thailandʼs vicinity.

ambitious in light of where we standKei Tomioka
Director, Executive Officer, COO

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Business Strategies by Segment

Sansan/Bill One Business
The Sansan/Bill One Business provides solutions forcorporate customers, including the Sansan sales DX
solution, Bill One cloud-based invoice management
solution, and Contract One contract database. EachStory

As we strive to achieve our mid-term financial goals, we aim to maximize sales while improving profitability in
the Sansan/Bill One Business, and achieve full-year profitability in the Eight Business. In FY2022, we embarked
on strategies aimed at achieving business growth. These included a renewal of the Sansan sales DX solution,
strengthening the sales structure of the Bill One cloud-based invoice management solution to maintain high growth,and improving the profitability of the Eight business card app.

solution resolves business challenges, transforming how
companies and businesspeople work and driving DX
by digitizing analog information to increase businessefficiency and enable effective data use.

Service/Option(Year Launched)

Structure of Reportable Business Segments
professionals, and we are offering solutions to monetize
its network of 3.3+ million registered users.

Net Sales by Segment *1

2,867(millions of yen)
■ Sansan/Bill One Business■ Eight Business■ Others/Adjustments

126

Corporate sales activities• Business cards• Emails• Website inquiries• Seminars• Phone callsBill One cloud-based invoice
management solution (2020)

Corporate invoice-related
operations• Operations involving paper
invoices• Compliance with laws andregulations• Invoices

Bill One Business Card (2023)

Corporate credit card payment
operations• Operations involving paper
receipts• Compliance with laws andregulations• Receipts when making credit
card payments• Credit card statement
information

Contract One contract database(2022)

Corporate contract document
operations• Operations involving paper
contracts• Compliance with laws andregulations• Contract documents- FY2022 Financial Results *4

Eight Business

B2C Services(millions of yen)B2B Services*2-DX Camp-Business IT ＆ Saas EXPO
-Eight Career Design

2,414■ Sansan308(millions of yen)

■ Bill One

FY2022

14,60544

Sansan, Inc.

18,105

5,290

7,005
5,752

29,835to29,046

22,516
19,793
FY2020*2 Service provided by CREATIVE SURVEY INC., a consolidated subsidiary *3 Service provided by logmi, Inc., a consolidated subsidiary(millions of yen)

22,516■ Others (Contract One, etc.)/

Adjustments*3

Adjusted Operating Profit

Net Sales

Sales Breakdown

Bill One-Eight Team
-Meets-Climbers

year on year, maintaining steady progress.
For Bill One, we worked to sustain high growth bybolstering the sales organization through hiring as well
as expanding the solutionʼs functions. Consequently, May
2023 MRR increased 172.8% year on year, ARR reached3,798 million yen, and Bill One net sales were up 192.2%
year on year.
For Contract One, we focused on launching thesolution leveraging the strengths, insights, and expertise
cultivated through our existing solutions.
For FY2023, we forecast net sales growth of 29.0% to32.5% year on year for the Sansan/Bill One Business.

In FY2022, Sansan/Bill One Business net sales increased
24.4% year on year, mainly owing to Sansanʼs solid
growth and Bill Oneʼs continued high growth. Our
adjusted operating profit increased 21.8% year on year,
owing to higher net sales.
Looking at individual solutions, we renewed Sansan
from a cloud-based contact management service to asales DX solution, making efforts to add new features.
Leveraging these new functionalities, we focused onstrengthening sales abilities to acquire new users andupsell to existing users. In particular, we reinforced thesales organization targeting medium- and large-sizedcompanies. Sansanʼs net sales resultantly grew 15.0%-Eight Premium

OthersSansan sales DX solution (2007)• Managing paper businesscards• Utilizing and managing
scattered contact information

Data*1 Elimination of intra-company transactions (sales), and costs not allocated to segments arerecorded in “Adjustments.”, The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31.

Overview of Segments

SansanAnalog Information Digitized

FY202225,51022,516

Sansan/Bill One Business

Analog Processes to Optimize

Governance

We operate under two reportable segments: Sansan/Bill
One and Eight.
The Sansan/Bill One Business accounts for 88% ofconsolidated net sales, making it our primary segment.
Within this segment, the Sansan sales DX solution, ourfounding service, accounts for 78% of consolidated
net sales. Although the Bill One cloud-based invoice
management solution launched in May 2020 accounts
for only 9% of consolidated net sales, its share isexpanding each fiscal year amid continued high growth.
The Contract One contract database launched in January2022 is also included here.
The Eight Business accounts for 11% of consolidated net
sales. It offers the Eight business card app for individualBusiness Domain

Strategies

Main Solutions and Optional Features in the Sansan/Bill One Business

FY2021

FY2022

FY2023 (forecast)

FY2020

FY2021

FY2022*4 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

StrategyManage your contacts,
maximize your business

Sansan Potential Market Size *5Company Size
(Employees)

Sansan Coverage
by Company

Sansan Coverageby Employee

16.3%

4.5%

(YoY)

1,000+(+0.2 pts.)

3.9%

100–999(+0.0 pts.)<100(+0.0 pts.)

0.3%

Story

(YoY)

(+0.4 pts.)

3.3%(+0.3 pts.)

1.6%(+0.5 pts.)*5 Sansan coverage is calculated with the number of subscriptions and total number of IDs in
Sansan for FY2022 end as the numerator and the number based on Economic Census for
Business Activity in 2021 issued by the Statistics Bureau as the denominator.

Strategies

Although Sansan targets all companies, only about 3%*5 of theworking population in Japan uses our services, leaving ample
room for further domestic expansion.
In June 2022, we rebranded the product as a sales DX
solution to pursue future growth. Based on this, we willcontinue expanding functions related to corporate and contact
information, thereby improving Sansanʼs value as a businessdatabase. We will also expand monthly recurring sales per
subscription by strengthening our sales structure to increase
subscriptions, as well as by acquiring new customers andpromoting expanded use by existing customers, based on theidea that all employees at user companies will utilize our solutions(company-wide use).

- Sansan – Sales DX Solutionof organizations and individuals based on the concept of“Manage your contacts, maximize your business.”

Social Issues and Needs
and reduced opportunities to exchange business cards, whichmakes it even more critical to obtain accurate information on
business partners and manage and utilize contact information.
When contacting companies for the first time, few details, suchas sales, industry, employee numbers, and regions, are known,
making it challenging to identify appropriate sales targets anddevelop efficient sales strategies.

Data

Accurately obtaining company names, customer names, job titles,
and contact details and using them efficiently is crucial for sales.
However, customer contact information from business cards,
emails, meeting records, seminar attendance information, etc., ismanaged by individual employees, meaning companies are noteffectively utilizing this valuable information. Management is also
often analog, so there is much potential for digitization to improve
operational efficiency. The pandemic increased online meetings

Receive, digitize &centralize your invoices.
Fast monthly closing.

GovernanceLaunched in 2007, the Sansan sales DX solution creates aunique database for each client by combining corporate
and contact information, strengthening the sales abilities

Service Overview
Sansan lets users view over 1 million corporate data items,
including previously uncontacted companies. They canaccumulate and visualize contact points, including emails andwebsite inquiries – not just business cards. Such corporate andcontact information forms a unique database for each company.
This enables efficient discovery of new leads and sharing of
the latest information, boosting individual sales repʼ efforts.
Moreover, when integrated with external systems, data can beused for planning and executing sophisticated, customer-specificsales strategies to maximize overall sales.
Sansanʼs business model includes a basic plan for companywide use, with licensing fees based on company size and usage,
plus other fees for, say, scanner rental. We also offer paid services
for introducing Sansan, such as digitizing stacks of business cards
and implementation support.

- Bill One – Cloud-Based Invoice Management Solution
Launched in 2020, the Bill One cloud-based invoice
management solution supports faster managerial
decision-making by streamlining company-wideaccounting operations, based on the concept of “Receive,
digitize & centralize your invoices. Fast monthly closing.”

Social Issues and Needs

Share information other than business cards company-wide

Various corporate information provided

Email signatures

Job/position

Paper invoices are still more common than digital, and analog
processes such as managing mailed documents, circulating
invoices for internal approval, and manually entering invoice
details substantially lower efficiency. Having to come to work todeal with paper invoices also impedes diversifying work styles.
Companies in Japan must also adapt to new frameworks such as
the amended Electronic Bookkeeping Act and the new Invoicing
System, which will likely make invoicing more complex.

Service Overview
LocationsWebsite inquiries/forms

Business
cards

Meeting notes
Seminar participants

46

Sansan, Inc.

1 million+ data
items ofcorporate
information

Corporate risk
information
Personnel changes

Bill One can handle and accurately digitize paper, PDF, andother invoices from different locations and departments. Users
donʼt have to enter the data themselves. Instead, they canaccess correctly digitized invoice information from the start andcomplete review and approval, etc., in the cloud. This informationis centrally managed in a highly searchable database, so
customers can use it for controlling costs and uncovering sales
opportunities to maximize future revenue.
We are also integrating Bill One with accounting and otherthird-party systems, and are expanding optional features. We

provide various functionalities besides invoice issuance and proxypostal delivery, including launching the Bill One Business Card inJune 2023.
Bill Oneʼs business model comprises an initial setup fee,including implementation support by a specialized consultant,and a monthly fee based on number of invoices digitized.
Optional functions include invoice issuance and a corporatecard. For companies with 100 or fewer employees, we offer a
Small Business Plan with no initial and monthly fees, subject tocertain conditions.

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03_Governance

Data

Email
attachment

Digitization of invoices with 99.9% *6 accuracy

UploadCentralized management by database

Build your contract
database,
maximize your business

Strategies

Postal mailOne-stop receipt

Story

Bill One user companies

Invoice issuer*6 Digitization accuracy when conditions specified by Sansan, Inc. are met.

StrategyBill One Potential Market Size
Companies inJapan *7
Invoice network
Approx.

2millionBill One Paid Subscriptions

48

Sansan, Inc.

Launched in 2022, the Contract One contract database
digitizes contracts in paper and electronic formats,contributing to corporate revenue generation based on

the concept of “Build your contract database, maximize
your business.”

1,581

Social Issues and Needs*7 The number of total companies in Japan based on statistics from the Ministry of Internal
Affairs and Communicationsʼ 2021 Economic Census for Business Activity Survey.

Bill One Business Card
With Bill One enjoying strong growth and an
expanding number of companies in its invoice
network, we have started adding new featuresand entering new business areas. In June 2023, welaunched the Bill One Business Card as an optionalfeature, expanding into the fintech domain.
Companies face analog challenges in corporate
credit card operations, such as collecting receipts
and invoices and spending time reconciling thesewith credit card statements, in addition to beingpressed to comply with the new Invoicing System.
The Bill One Business Card addresses theseissues, enabling centralized managementof corporate card operations within Bill One.
Transactions made with the card are instantly
linked to that companyʼs Bill One screen after use.

- Contract One – Contract DatabaseData

90,000~Approx.

GovernanceBill One targets companies from all industries and of all sizes.
Counting subscribers using the free service and companies
sending invoices to paid subscribers, our invoice network
covered approximately 90,000 companies, only about 4% *7 ofall companies in Japan, as of May 31, 2023. We therefore see vastpotential for further growth.
With this potential in mind, we are working to continue highsales growth, aiming for ARR of 7+ billion yen in May 2024.
Specifically, to maximize sales, we will expand paid subscriptions
by reinforcing our sales headcount and strengthening marketing
activities. We will also work to further increase monthly sales per
paid subscription by expanding functionality to improve userconvenience and strengthening the sales structure for mediumand large-sized companies.

This enables automated reconciliation of card
statements and receipts. Uploaded receipts are
digitized within the next business day, and alerts
are displayed for discrepancies versus statement
amounts, streamlining receipt reconciliation that
accounting staff previously did manually. Moreover,requests to upload receipts are automatically sentfrom Bill One to users after card use, eliminating
the need for accounting staff to individually chaseusers for submission. The card also facilitatescompliance with laws and regulations, including
the Invoicing System, while reducing risks ofunauthorized use.
The business model comprises income fromdigitizing receipts and from transaction fees.

Electronic formats are becoming more prevalent these days inbusiness-to-business contracting. However, some companies
still prefer paper documents. This combination of paper andelectronic formats complicates contract management. And
since contract information is not centrally managed, it cannot beutilized as an effective business asset.
Moreover, while contract terms should of course be adheredto, post-signing tasks, such as revising contracts based on market
environment, business conditions, and strategies, are also crucial.

Service Overview
For paper contracts, users simply mail them to us, and Contract
One scans and accurately digitizes them. For e-contracts,
compatibility with e-contracting vendors allows Contract One
to receive electronic contract data in PDF format and digitize it.
This lets users build a centralized contract database for unified
management. Moreover, users can easily leverage contract
information from the database, leading to new business
opportunities and maximizing revenue.
The business model offers a pricing plan comprising an initial
setup fee that includes implementation support by a specialized
consultant and digitization of existing contracts, plus monthly fees
calculated based on the number of contracts digitized for theclient company.

Contracts
previously signed

Paper contracts

Contracts
to be exchanged

PDF contracts
Electronic contracts

Strategy
Since launching Contract One in January 2022, we have remained
focused on starting up the service, and had secured 145
subscriptions as of May 31, 2023. We are working to improve user
value through various functional improvements. In July 2023, weadded a new feature leveraging GPT generative AI to offer indocument search capabilities and a contract summary function.
With summarization, users can search for necessary contracts
by company name or other parameters, then view easy-tounderstand summaries in a format similar to bullet points. This

enables not just legal staff but also sales staff unfamiliar withlegal terminology to easily grasp contract outlines. We are
currently developing functions to enable systematic contract
management and checking of contract status to support
negotiations with business partners.
Going forward, we will continue efforts to improve productmarket fit by developing additional user revenue-improving
functionalities, aiming to further Contract Oneʼs contribution to
our overall growth.

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02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Social Issues and Needs

Eight Business
policy focused on profitability, we aim to achieve positive
adjusted operating profit for the full fiscal year.

Main Service in the Eight BusinessBusiness Domain

Eight business card app (2012)

Analog Processes to Optimize

Individual business activities

・Managing paper business

cards

・Managing personal network

Analog Information Digitized• Business cards- FY2022 Financial Results *8

303(millions of yen)

Net Sales(millions of yen) 2,213■ B2B Services

FY2022

2,867■ B2C Services

2,563

1,582

FY2020

FY2021*8 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31.

Adjusted Operating Profit

2,867(millions of yen)
3,354
to
3,153

FY2022 FY2023 (forecast)-732
FY2020-355
FY202150

Sansan, Inc.

*9 “QR Code” is a registered trademark of Denso Wave Incorporated.

Strategy
From the second half of FY2022, we have shifted to management
focused on profitability, aiming to achieve positive adjusted
operating profit for the full FY2023.
While the net sales growth rate might decrease from revising
the monetization plan to improve profitability, we will continue
pursuing steady growth by enhancing our successful businessevents and revising the pricing strategy for business card andcontact management services. In September 2023, looking

ahead to recovering post-pandemic business card exchange
opportunities, we renewed Eightʼs functionality as an app
focused on business cards under the new concept of “One-touchbusiness card exchange and management.” Specifically, we
expect this refocus on digital business card exchange and cardmanagement will help to further expand the user base and leadto stronger monetization going forward.

-170
FY2022

DX for Business Card Exchange- Eight – Business Card App
Launched in 2012, Eight, a business card app for
individuals, supports businesspeople by enabling smart
management of their business cards and contacts based

attracting Eight users, and business card management services
for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Data

Sales Breakdown(B2C service) sales. Various B2B service monetization
efforts, such as holding large business events, led to a
33.0% year-on-year increase in B2B service sales.
The net sales growth rate for the Eight Business is
forecast to rise from 10.0% to 17.0% in FY2023, and we areaiming to achieve positive adjusted operating profit for
the full fiscal year.

The Eight app is geared toward individual, rather than company,
use. Registering oneʼs own business card information upon firstusing the app gives free access to basic features. Users can also
create and manage their career profile by adding in businesscards received throughout their professional lives. The app
includes a feature for instantly exchanging Virtual Cards just byusers bringing their smartphones near one other. Exchanged
cards get automatically updated, letting users stay informed
about contactsʼ promotions, transfers, job changes, and othercareer moves. Exchanging cards with non-users of Eight can bedone via QR Code *9 or URL.
The business model is based on providing paid services toindividuals and companies. The paid service for individuals allows
use of premium contact management features. For companies,
the paid service mainly offers participation at business events

Governance

In FY2022, we strengthened the monetization of our paid
services for companies (B2B services), thereby increasing
Eight Business net sales by 29.5% year on year. This
increase resulted in a reduction of the adjusted operating
loss by 185 million yen compared with the same period
for the previous year.
With normalizing business amid the waning pandemic,
Eight users grew by 200,000 year on year to 3.31 million,
driving a 6.0% year-on-year rise in individual paid service

Service Overview

Strategies

Service/Option(Year Launched)digitized in the future. The pandemic accelerated changes suchas staying at home and adopting remote work. Notably, thespread of digital technology has progressed at an astounding
pace, with smartphone-based payment methods expanding
rapidly.
In business as well, the proliferation of cloud services enabling
completely online workflows means paper business cards arelikely to give way to demand for exchanging digital cards using
only a smartphone.

Story

The Eight Business mainly provides the Eight businesscard app and offers paid services for individuals andcompanies as monetization plans. Under a management

When networking for business, it is important to acquire accurate
information about contacts and to maintain connections, even
if the other party, for instance, changes jobs. However, using
analog-based paper business cards makes it difficult to accessand update information, meaning that business encounters are
not fully utilized. Problems such as forgetting oneʼs own card or
losing someone elseʼs also frequently occur with paper businesscard exchanges.
Different aspects of our daily lives are also expected to beon the concept of “One-touch business card exchange
and management.”

Our motive in launching the Eight business card
app in 2012 was a desire to revolutionize the very
act of exchanging business cards. Despite thedigitization of various business tools amid the DX
trend, analog-based paper business cards haveremained mainstream, unchanged even with the
spread of our namesake Sansan solution. Even
after launching Eight, we had yet to generate
major change in card exchange practices, but webelieve the new Virtual Card Exchange function
added in September 2023 can evolve the cardexchange experience. Its key distinguishing featureis enabling complete card exchange through theapp, eliminating the need for physical, paper

cards. Since Eight also incorporates businesscard management and social media functions,cards can be managed by smartphone alone,
and users can stay updated about their contacts,
including transfers, promotions, job changes, andother career moves. We envision the Virtual Card
Exchange function being used in all situations
where businesspeople gather offline, such as sales
meetings, conferences, and networking events. By
promoting this function through Sansan-hosted
conferences like Climbers Startup JAPAN 2023 in
November 2023, and collaborations with event
companies, we will advance the experience ofbusiness encounters, making it smarter.

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02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Management and other superiors in
the organization arenʼt always rightcertain directive might not benefit thecompany, they should constructively
challenge it. Such individuals should
be at the heart of our operations. An
organizationʼs forward momentum
hinges on each memberʼs passion
Strategies

We Advance
Human Resource Measureswith Determination and Intent

Storyabout every point. If people feel aand determination. At Sansan,
we constantly ask, “What do you
want to do?” Even as weʼre in aphase of business expansion andactive recruitment, we continue toemphasize those who can makedecisions with determination andWe analyze these monthly resultsof those decisions. Nothing is set in

together with HR data, such asstone at Sansan; we can change

attendance and performanceas needed. This flexibility is anotherreviews. For example, past data

important value we aim to preserve.

shows patterns of what happens

Every new graduates and mid-

Besides the SCOP, about once

before leaves of absence andcareer hire at Sansan undergoes

every ２ years, we hold a company-

resignations. Now, similara 5-day intensive program on our

wide Katachi discussion in which thetrends trigger alerts, promoting

corporate philosophy, known as

entire staff reviews and reaffirms ourcollaboration with the relevant

the Katachi (shape) of Sansan,

corporate philosophy. We debate

department so we can retain talent.

Solidifying and Instilling a
Mission-Driven Corporate
CultureCHRO Message

Director, Executive Officer,
CHRO

Yuta Ohma52

including our mission, vision, andtopics such as Sansanʼs future

values, through the Sansan Culture

trajectory and the values we should

various HR initiatives and internal

Onboarding Program (SCOP) before

prioritize moving forward. Staff fromevents through these surveys.

joining their team. This program

all roles, departments, and lengths

Beyond the company-wide

delves into questions such as: Whyof service split into 100+ mixed teams

Katachi discussion, we advance HR

do encounters lead to innovation?

and engage in these discussions

measures, such as salary revisions

Under what conditions can wefor 3+ hours. Most recently, we held

and introduction of new systems,

become business infrastructure?

sessions for each department towith determination and intent.

We also verify the impact ofWhich values are pivotal in achieving

discuss what is necessary to achieve

Verifying their impact is, therefore,

Qualities We Seek in Talent

Our solutions, linked to these ideals,

reflect on their determination andour mission and vision? Each valueʼsoverwhelming, breakthroughcrucial. In November 2022, wecreate new forms of value in theintent. They wonʼt develop new

significance is discussed, including

growth. We invest this time because

introduced the Yoriai system, making

Sansan places importance on being

world. This clarity draws talentvalue if they merely implement

why it was chosen. For example, forengagement leads to retaining top

the free space at our Omotesandoa mission-driven company. While

with whom our mission and vision

their superiorsʼ decisions without“Make decisions with determination

talent, which is the foundation forhead office available from 6 p.m.

we offer Sansan, Bill One, Contract

resonate deeply, or those attracted

personal determination. Individuals

and intent,” we explain that if an

future financial returns.

onward for internal communication.

One, Eight, and other solutions,to our story and the way everything

must drive the organization forward

employee were to ask a supervisor,itʼs unlikely that anyone would join

at Sansan is connected, including

with their own determination and“Which of ３ options is better?” theus with a specific passion for, say,our solutions.

intent. This approach is absolutely

likely response would be, “Which one

Employee Engagement

We track which employees use thissystem the most and the resultant
benefits they perceive. Using

business cards or invoices. Weʼve

We seek people who makeessential for core talent. Of course,

would you choose to implement?”

At Sansan, we conduct monthly

our surveys to gauge the cost-

expressed our aspirations throughdecisions with determination andindividualsʼ determination and intent

This underscores our focus on

engagement surveys for all regulareffectiveness of such initiatives inindividual determination.

our mission of “Turning encountersintent – one of our values. As they

may sometimes not perfectly matchand contract employees. Our

boosting engagement lets us makeinto innovation” and vision toadvance management and businessthe direction that management

We also show how our values

engagement scores consistently

continual improvement.

“Become business infrastructure.”

strategies, individuals shouldor the organization have set.

have evolved since the company

exceed industry averages but

Sansan, Inc.

Data

havenʼt yet reached the top tier.

were removed and the background

Governancebegan, explaining why some values

intent.

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01_Story

Recognition of Mediumto-Long-Term Issues

02_Strategies

03_GovernanceData

has increased the number ofsalary for new graduates by 10–11%

departments and managerial

to 5.6 million yen. Although weʼvepositions. Post-restructuring, many

In June 2023, we shifted from ahistorically analyzed and adjusted

people are now temporarily holding

structure with sales for all products

compensation based on market

dual managerial responsibilities. As

consolidated under one organization

benchmarks, this hike is our most

we ease out these overlapping roles,

to business divisions with separate

substantial one yet, reflecting ourwe also see a chance to showcase

sales organizations for each product.

strong determination and intent to

the depth and breadth of positions

Weʼve significantly shifted ourreach industry-leading pay levels.

available for future career growth.

policy from resource optimization

Moving forward, weʼll continue toAccordingly, our focus will be on

to commend colleagues who

fundamentally based on decisions

Philippines. With a vision for a more

to net sales maximization, andmaintain highly competitive pay

further supporting and enabling our

exemplified our values. Our current

we have made with determination

multinational workforce, weʼll also

we recognize that recruitingaligned with talent market trends.

top talent so they can thrive.

Unipos posting rate is around 60%.

and intent regarding whether orincrease hiring of people fromand securing talent is a vitalAt the same time, itʼs important

Increasing this rate will encourage

not a given system contributes

other countries for our Japan-based

employees to embody our values,

to improved productivity andengineering team, which is now

and it will improve engagement andaccelerated business growth.

predominantly Japanese. As wefoster our corporate culture. WhileContraceptive prescription was first

expand globally, itʼs imperative tomore appropriate for ensuring that

our sales team in particular will

deserving employees are suitably

inherently drive business growth.

rewarded. Our mission grade

While weʼve achieved a certain

system determines rank based

level of performance by continuing

not only on past results but also

selective hiring, rapidly expanding

future expectations and roles, withhiring numbers is a top priority,
though it is challenging. Our
recruitment target for FY2023

360-degree feedback system forresources” and “Promote diversity,

is around 420 people on aevaluations, by which individuals areequity and inclusion.”

consolidated basis. Of these, about

assessed by colleagues in various

200 will be in sales, which includes

positions. Supervisors are instructed

development, and success ofcustomer success and marketing.

to talk with their team members

human resources,” weʼve set theEngineers and creators will make up

about gaps they need to bridgeover 30% of the total, with the rest inin line with mission grade criteria,

branding, corporate, HR, and otherback-office roles supporting our
mission.
To recruit and secure top talent,

thereʼs a cost associated with using

introduced for interested employees

understand each countryʼs laws,

Unipos, itʼs undoubtedly outweighed

as a way of trialing services frombusiness customs, religions, andI am the owner responsible forby the positive impact on the entire

femtech ventures. We then verified

cultures, focusing on ensuring

two material issues (priority

organization, beyond hiring an

the resulting productivity gains

that we create organizations

downgrades possible if performanceissues): “Promote the recruitment,

employee with an annual salarycompared with costs before fulland environments that are

doesnʼt improve. Weʼve adopted adevelopment, and success of humanequivalent to that cost.

adoption. Enhancing childcare

psychologically safe and respectsupport resulted from the companyʼshuman rights.

For “Promote the recruitment,

facilitate an early return to work,

Final Thoughts

assuming employees will takematernity and childcare leave. We

Recruiting and securing talent aregoals for targets for FY2029 of 35%

equity and inclusion,” our goals arefound out that it is more productive

top management priorities as wereferral-based hiring and an 80%

to have 30%+ female managers andfor an employee on parental leavelook to reignite our growth. Even as

and the expectations for advancing

Unipos posting rate. For referral-

45%+ female employees by FY2029.

to return than to hire a replacement,

we expand the scale, itʼs vital to not

to the next grade based on grade

based hiring, we track the eNPS

Ideally, we want both to be 50%, but

prompting us to make aggressive

only preserve but also strengthen

descriptions.

score trend for the question, “Would

given that they are currently 18% andinvestment in this direction.

our mission-driven culture. Thisyou recommend us to others you

35%, respectively, these targets willknow outside the company?” in our

still be challenging.

Our shift to a divisional structure

To achieve these quantitative

Regarding diversity, we will also

past year, Iʼve had the opportunity

expand employment of people

to discuss with our CEO the DNA

with disabilities and people fromthat Sansan wants to maintain.

hope to significantly improve ourtargets, weʼre focusing onother countries. While we have

As a group of individuals withcurrent score, which is around –10, tomaking our HR systems morealready ensured that our current

determination and intent, our goal is

speed up our recruitment.

comprehensive. Our Oyaco program

employment rate for individuals

for every member to remain highly

The Unipos platform lets

subsidizes costs like non-accreditedwith disabilities exceeds legal

motivated and continually create

employees commend each othernursery schools and after-school

mandates, going forward, we will

new types of value. As the CHRO,

using a point system. This helps

care for all child-rearing employees,

create environments where they canIʼm committed to fostering suchboost motivation across the board.

irrespective of gender. We also

directly contribute to our businessan organization and environment.

Each person has a point balance,

provide support specifically forand profitability, such as throughThe only way is one where therewith received points converting

women, such as menstrual leave

digitizing business cards or invoices.

is determination. Holding onto thisto monetary compensation.

and contraceptive prescription

Regarding foreign employees,

belief, we will keep moving forward.

“Appreciate and be inspired” isservices.

accelerating Bill Oneʼs overseas

one of our values, and even before

Sansan, Inc.

search for what it could do to

Regarding “Promote diversity,monthly engagement survey. We

54

Promoting Diversity, Equity
and Inclusion

Data

growth. We now see that expanding

Governanceto make performance reviews

Strategies

Promoting the
Recruitment, Development,
and Success of Human
Resources

management issue for businessStory

we raised the starting annual

While each of these systems may,

expansion starts with hiring

introducing Unipos, we had a systemon their own, seem like individual

engineering talent at ourwith a different tool for employees

welfare benefits, our HR policy isdevelopment center in Cebu,

Yuta Ohma
Director, Executive Officer, CHROANNUAL REPORT 2023

55

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Human Capital- Referral-Based Hiring

we established long-term quantitative targets for FY2029,
including 35% referral-based hiring, an 80% Unipos
posting rate, and a minimum of 30% female managers
and 45% female employees. We are working on initiatives
to achieve these targets.

Materiality Targets

Respect Employee Diversity
and Producing Innovation

Material Issue

FY2029 Target

FY2022 Result

Promote the recruitment,
development, and success of humanresources

Referral-based hiring rate

Promote diversity, equity andinclusion

Ratio of female managers

30% or higher

17.8%

Ratio of female employees

45% or higher

34.9%

*1

Unipos posting rate

35%

12.0%

80%

59.6%

Recruiting, Developing, and Promoting Human Resources

56

Sansan, Inc.

We use the all-employee peer bonus® culture
platform service Unipos to visualize internal instancesof commendation within the company. This instills our
corporate culture and boosts employee engagement.
On the Unipos platform, provided by Unipos Inc.,
employees can send small tips that can be converted
to compensation to colleagues, along with comments
of praise for good work and contributions. Sharing

commendations on Unipos makes good employee
actions visible company-wide, which should improve
employee engagement. The accumulated data can also
be leveraged in human resource initiatives.
The Unipos posting rate by our employees was 59.6%
in FY2022. By promoting its use, we aim to reach 80% by
FY2029.

Unipos: An Embodiment of Our Values*1 We use a peer bonus platform service, provided by Unipos Inc., that involves all employees.

Continuously strengthening recruitment is an essential
element of our growth strategy. As of May 31, 2023, we
had approximately 1,400 employees, and our variousorganizations, including development, sales, and backoffice, comprise talented individuals from diverse
backgrounds. We emphasize hiring employees withstrong expertise and skills, and who have a missiondriven attitude that matches our corporate philosophy.
This emphasis stems from our belief that people
whose ideals match our corporate philosophy, such as
our mission, vision, and values, are more likely to be
successful after joining. Our mission-driven corporate
culture has been an effective tool for recruiting, letting
us hire a range of highly capable individuals. We arealso developing systems and environments that not
only enable our staff to succeed, but also allow our- Unipos

Data

Area

GovernanceAmong the five priority areas identified in 2022, under“Respect Employee Diversity and Producing Innovation,”
we define “Promoting the recruitment, development, andsuccess of human resources” and “Promoting diversity,
equity and inclusion” as material issues. In August 2023,

Strategies

Material Issues (Priority Issues)quantitatively measure organizational health.
Our referral-based hiring rate was 12.0% in FY2022. Byenhancing the My Myaku system and promoting its use
by all employees, we aim to reach 35% by FY2029.

Story

Talent is an essential management resource. Our ability to achieve high growth while creating new markets owes
to the successes of our talented human resources. To ensure our future growth, we must provide environmentsthat welcome diversity and allow all staff, whatever their background, to work with great motivation. Throughthis approach, we are working to create innovations that solve business challenges, through measures including
promoting our employeesʼ success.

Since 2015, we have had an employee referral-based
hiring system called My Myaku, which provides benefits
such as covering meal costs when making referrals andreward payments when referrals are hired, to promotereferral-based hiring. The hiring success rate through My
Myaku is about 10 times that from standard procedures,
greatly contributing to our most crucial growth strategy:
talent acquisition. Moreover, as employees themselves
approach people they want to work with, My Myaku
hires tend to have less mismatch with the company andlower early resignation rates than standard hires. Also,
since the promotion of My Myaku requires employees
who think so highly of the company that they will referclose friends and acquaintances, we place importanceon the referral-based hiring rate as an indicator toorganization to absorb their knowledge and promote
their growth and success, so they also develop thosearound them.

Number of Employees*2(people)

1,399
1,205
955
714
549

FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021

FY2022

Guided by our value of “Appreciate and be
inspired,” we emphasize a culture in which
employees commend each other. Unipos is usedthroughout the company because it fully embodies
this value. We encourage employees to post on
Unipos adding various tags based on our mission,
vision, values, and annual theme, because webelieve that commending actions related to ourphilosophy and direction in a forum visible to all
employees, rather than just expressing gratitude
directly, helps instill those ideals and culture. We
also conduct PR for employees, such as, within thecompany, regularly commending and publicizing
exemplary actions that best embody our corporate
philosophy, from among the posts on Unipos. As
a result, in FY2022 over 80%*3 of employees werecommended on Unipos, with approximately 45,000
posts.
*3 Calculated for regular employees and contract employees of Sansan, Inc.
and Sansan Global Pte. Ltd.

Thank you for letting me sit in on the business negotiation.
You took the lead in every situation - the pre-meeting
briefing, the negotiation itself, and emailing the client. It
was an amazing learning experience for me. Iʼd appreciate
more opportunities like this in the future!

*2 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data- Program for New Employees

In April 2023, the Kamiyama Marugoto Collegeof Design, Technology, and Entrepreneurship,a private technical college, opened in the townof Kamiyama in Japanʼs Tokushima Prefecture.
Unlike conventional technical colleges, which focus
on technical education, Kamiyama Marugoto
lets students simultaneously study technology,
design, and entrepreneurship, with the goal of
nurturing people who can accomplish greatthings by creating great things – that is, people
who can change society. Students receive a
5-year integrated education from ages 15 to 20

in a residential college, living together with theirpeers. The curriculum includes practical aspects,
such as exercises and experiments, as well as
lecture-style classes. During classes, students
not only work on their assigned tasks but also
develop practical problem-solving skills throughbidirectional communication fostered by small
group discussions, group work, and debates.
Besides classes, the college also provides students
with opportunities to grow independently throughextracurricular activities and interactions with thelocal community.

Strategies

key technologies. We also provide opportunities to hear
about our corporate philosophy (Katachi of Sansan) andhistorical changes from the CEO, directors, executive
officers, group managers, and other members, and to
discuss them. The goal is to foster deeper understandingof our corporate culture by having new hires articulate
concepts themselves rather than just receiving
information. Employees who have completed the training
have given positive feedback, with remarks like, “Afterbeing assigned to a worksite, Iʼve often referred back to
the corporate philosophy as a guide for decisions,” and“Learning about the company as a whole has allowed
me to better understand my departmentʼs role.”

Story

Our Sansan Culture Onboarding Program (SCOP) is a
6-month training program for mid-career hires. Together
with their colleagues, new hires familiarize themselveswith Sansanʼs philosophy, company culture, journey,
and products, helping them get up to speed so they canquickly deliver results contributing to our mission andvision. In FY2022, employee participation time in SCOP
totaled approximately 5,600 hours.
SCOP starts with a 5-day program upon joining,
including after being assigned to a worksite. The training
covers not only basics like administrative onboarding
procedures and internal systems, but also opportunities
to hear from department representatives about aspects
such as product details, development processes, andKamiyama Marugoto College of Design,
Technology, and Entrepreneurship

5-day program

Learn basics about Sansan, the company.
Hear thoughts on our corporate philosophy, the “Katachi of Sansan,” from the CEO, directors,
and executive officers.

Katachiba (group managers)

Together with group managers, verbalize oneʼs own thoughts on the Katachi in relation tooneʼs own work.

Katachi Offsite Meeting

Deepen understanding by articulating the Katachi in oneʼs own words based on the training
so far.
Build internal connections through interactions with senior colleagues.

- Developing IT Talent
We help to foster entrepreneurs by supporting theKamiyama Marugoto College of Design, Technology,
and Entrepreneurship, built on the concept of “A school
changing humanityʼs future through technology anddesign.” We believe our support contributes to thedevelopment of IT talent in Japan and is in line with our

58

Sansan, Inc.

Data

Katachi Training (CEO) /Katachi Salon (directors) /Katachi Salon (executive officers)

Nanahachi (senior colleagues)

Governance

SCOP Contents

material issue of “Promote the recruitment, development,
and success of human resources.” To facilitate this
support, we established an internal department thatoffers marketing, design, PR, and other insights cultivatedthrough our business.

Kamiyama Marugoto Collegeof Design, Technology, andEntrepreneurship
Executive Director

The Kamiyama Marugoto College of Design, Technology, andEntrepreneurship curriculum centers on those three pillars:
technology, design, and entrepreneurship. Intensive programming
fundamentals and design methods using software are taught.
The weekly Wednesday Night event has hosted 25 entrepreneur
guest lecturers in 12 groups thus far. Student-launched projects,
such as programming contests and agricultural activities with local
residents, are flourishing. We have also initiated a Sansan-supported
scholarship program, in which recipients have already started
learning about corporate collaborations. Going forward, we willremain committed to developing students with the power to change
humanityʼs future.

Takaki Matsuzaka

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Our policy is to actively recruit and promote talent
without focusing on attributes such as backgroundor gender, and to give all employees fair evaluations
and promotion opportunities. Through the design ofActive communication among employees is necessary
for the organization to absorb its talentʼs expertiseand enable each employee to achieve further growth.
We have implemented initiatives and environmental
improvements for that purpose, investing 12 million yen in
employee exchange initiatives in FY2022.
In addition to existing programs like the Know Me meal
cost subsidy and Yoiko club activity, in October 2022, wevarious internal systems and training, we ensure that all
employees are treated fairly as professionals, without
judgment based on specific attributes.

- Supporting Womenʼs Careerswork. It subsidizes extra fees for non-accredited nurseryschools until age 3. We also support use of babysittersand housekeeping services. To continue careerdevelopment while balancing childcare and nursing
care, employees can choose work styles that suit theircircumstances. We also apply employment classifications
that enable flexible ways of working, respecting our
employeesʼ wills and motivations.

● Ratio of female employees in management
34.2

32.8

34.9

33.6

11.0

FY2019FY2020

FY2021

FY2022*4 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31. Calculated forregular employees and contract employees of the Company on a nonconsolidated basis.

- Promoting Employment of Foreign Nationals and People with Disabilities
As we seek to aggressively expand overseas, we arefocusing on hiring non-Japanese employees. These
accounted for 2.6% of employees*5 as of May 31, 2023.
We strive to create a corporate culture that embraces
diversity while realizing our mission, by creating
opportunities for interaction between non-Japaneseemployees at overseas locations and Japaneseemployees in Japan, and by encouraging communication.

Our ratio of employees with disabilities *6 as of March 31,
2023, was 2.6%. We are working to create and expand
employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
*5 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended May 31. Calculated forregular employees and contract employees of Sansan, Inc. and Sansan
Global Pte. Ltd.
*6 The graphs show results for fiscal years ended March 31. Calculated forregular, contract, and part-time employees of the Company on a nonconsolidated basis.

Ratio of Non-Japanese Employees *5

Ratio of Employees with Disabilities *6

(%)

(%)
3.1

2.6

3.0

2.6

2.6

2.1

1.9
1.6

FY201860

Sansan, Inc.

FY2019FY2020

FY2021Through Unipos, employees commend
each other, along with small tips. We also
have occasions to recognize employees
who received many tips for embodying
our values.

We have set up a system to subsidize
dining expenses when three employees
in different departments have a meal
together. This contributes to stimulatinginternal exchanges and improving thequality of each employeeʼs work.

FY2022FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021

Mission Grade System

Peer Evaluation System

Engagement Survey

We have an evaluation system defining
authority, responsibility, treatment, etc., bygrade, determined based on performanceand future expectations, leveraging
growth for each individual.

We use a 360-degree feedback system
wherein colleagues evaluate eachother. Comprehensively incorporating
evaluations from colleagues in various
positions enables greater fairness.

We conduct a monthly engagement
survey of regular employees and contract
employees, analyzing the results to
inform areas such as self-management
and organizational management, andcompany-wide systems and policies.

- Knowledge Acquisition and Skills Improvement
Coacher

Geek Seek

Ocean

With the aim of identifying issues
concerning growth based on individual
growth potential and opportunities, andencouraging action, we implemented asystem that allows individuals to receive
coaching from employees certified as
educational coaches.

Aiming to improve our services, weestablished a system to subsidize thepurchase of publications, tools, and event
participation expenses for our engineers,
researchers, and designers to acquire
knowledge and work more efficiently.

As we are developing our overseas
business and hiring more non-Japaneseemployees, we have established a system
to support employees learning English or
Japanese by subsidizing associated costs,
such as lessons and book purchases.

- Enabling a Variety of Working Styles

2.4

2.4

Know Me- Creating Opportunities for Employee Growth and Enhancing Engagement

17.8

16.5

14.5

Sansan Values Star Award

Data

(%)

Company-Wide Katachi
Discussions
We regularly provide opportunities forall employees to discuss our corporate
philosophy. Having all members address
the companyʼs values and culture is an
essential opportunity for employee growthand productivity.

● Ratio of female employees*4

positions*4- Promoting Greater Understanding of Sansan and Fostering Lively InternalCommunication
GovernanceOur ratio of female managers and employees has
increased to 17.8% and 34.9% *4 as of May 31, 2023. To
achieve our FY2029 targets of 30%+ and 45%+ we willcontinue monitoring and conducting fair and unbiased
evaluations.
We have designed systems to enable women to play
more active roles. For example, our Oyaco system helps
women, who are unequally burdened by pregnancy,
childbirth, and childcare, better balance motherhood andnewly established Yoriai to spark innovation throughinternal encounters, providing free drinks and snacks in
the head office free space after work hours along with
events to create opportunities for gathered members
to interact, invigorating communication. ThroughSeptember 2023, more than half of our employees hadjoined Yoriai since it began.

Strategies

Unique Human Resources Systems
Story

Promoting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

FY2022

Oyaco
This system partially subsidizes fees
for non-accredited nursery schools,
babysitters, and childcare, helping female
employees to return from maternity
or childcare leave more easily andhelping employees to balance work andparenting.

Flextime System for Engineeringand Creative Staff
This system lets engineering and creative
staff freely adjust their daily starting andending times within set total working
hours, enabling a variety of workstyles
and improving work productivity.

Telecommuting System
This system lets employees work fromhome a certain number of days permonth, increasing work productivity
by flexibly combining office and home
workstyles.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Pursuit of a High-Level
Engineering Organization

strength.

each business line. Our engineers

How has the engineering organization

are now more effectively applied

are also actively seeking ways

evolved and what’s your current

across all products. While cross-to contribute effectively to thisassessment of it?

product R&D was practiced evencompany-wide shift in focus tobefore the Engineering Division

maximization by, for example,

came to be, the unified approach

deepening their collaboration

product. But when we introduced

has sharpened R&Dʼs alignment

with related departments to better

Eight, we established a separate

with specific product needs. For

understand their requirements anddevelopment team, distinct frominstance, our Sansan Labs R&D unit

ensure tighter alignment with our

Sansanʼs. Historically, weʼve set up

is now experimentally integratingproducts.

dedicated engineering teams for

its data research into Sansanʼseach new product.

features. A significant portion of

As our product lineup expanded,these functionalities emerges fromthe R&D teamʼs initiatives, marking abecame evident. Notably, there

notable uptick in dynamism.

were inconsistencies in evaluating

When considering our engineersʼ

Addressing the Growth ofEngineers
How do you approach the recruitment,
development, and evaluation ofengineers and problems withcareer paths, we also realized

resource fluidity. Since recruitment

the potential benefits of them

was product-specific, flexibly

working across multiple products

The consolidation of engineering

reallocating talent across products

simultaneously. By providing

teams within the Engineering

became a challenge and caused

opportunities to gather diverse

Division allowed us to thoroughly

resource inefficiencies.

product experiences, we believe

review and redesign our training

We responded to this by

weʼve uplifted both the breadth andpolicies and evaluation criteria.

consolidating all engineering

depth of their professional growth.

This overhaul has resulted inengineers?

Datagroups into a single Engineering

Governancesome downsides to this approach

Strategies

and development (R&D) outcomesStory

directing efforts toward maximizing

We began with Sansan as our only

Turning Our Engineering
Organization, Which Is Key toBusiness Maximization, into a
Globally Competitive Groupefficient development, weʼre now

Regarding quality, our research

noticeably higher quality and skills

Division in July 2021. We unified

Has there been any change in thein our engineers, leading to greater

the hiring process, and over theengineering organization since theproductivity.

following 2 years, our engineering

sales team underwent a structural shiftstaff grew about 150%, fortifying ourin June 2023?

organization. The division expanded

In terms of evaluation, weʼverolled out the Mission Grade System
tailored for specialists like engineersfrom 7 departments to 13. From

The sales structure has transitioned

and designers. This system assigns a

a numbers perspective, this nofrom optimization to maximization.

grade depending on the specific role

doubt increased our organizational

While maintaining a policy ofor “mission” an individual is given.
The mission gradesʼ appropriatenessis verified through quarterly one-

CISO, DPO,
Engineering Division Head
Message
Director, Executive Officer, CISO, DPO,
Engineering Division Head

Kenji Shiomi

on-one sessions between engineers
and their senior managers, typicallythose at the department headlevel. While our formal appraisals
are yearly, these quarterly sessions
offer a crucial touchpoint fordevelopmental feedback.
Regarding inter-product talent
movement, as we pivot toward abusiness maximization strategy,
weʼre committed to ensuring thatengineers can build careers across

62

Sansan, Inc.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_GovernanceDatadifferent products, such as from

we need more team members.

now, our focus is on Asian markets

to protect all our solutions. In 2023,

Eight to Sansan or Bill One. Our

When considering how thesuch as Singapore.

we established specialized groups

training methods are also designed

engineering organization can

to suit our engineersʼ particular

contribute to company growth,

Philippines based on the countryʼs

Department: one for cybersecurity,

career aspirations, whether they

recruitment is the primary task.

abundance of English-proficientanother for obtaining security-

see themselves continuing as

Our extensive data is one of ourtalent and the relative ease of hiring

related certifications, and a Security

professionals or evolving into

distinctive assets. New teamhighly qualified engineers there.

Management Group. Thoughmanagers.

members can find it very satisfying

Given the younger demographic andweʼve always had departmental

to use this data to generate novel

the many IT students, we foresee an

security measures, this overarchingvalue. As part of our broader societal

increasing amount of engineeringorganization ensures a heightened,vision, weʼre committed to leading

talent in the coming years.

cohesive defense strategy company-

In recruiting, we underscore ourorganization intend to contribute tocompanyʼs unique value proposition.

the company’s growth?

Aiming for Global Presence

Guided by protocols from our
Security Management Group, we
conduct drills such as penetration

security measure, it would be a total

rather the practical enhancement of

The company has highlighted “Provide

testing, which is a simulated

loss. As a SaaS company offering

our products through R&D. So, we

safe and stable infrastructure services”

external attack designed to

IT services, our growth depends

emphasize close links between our

Sansan now has a development baseand “Ensure robust protection of data

pinpoint vulnerabilities andon adopting new things. While

product development engineering

Engineering Divisionʼs primary roleoverseas. What’s the rationale behind

privacy and information security” asformulate solutions. Routine system

recognizing this intrinsic quality, we

teams and R&D units. Our R&D

is to meet our productsʼ evolving

this decision and the future strategy?

material issues (priority issues) andvulnerability checks, aided at times

also understand that maintaining

personnel take part in producthas set the measurable goals of “zeroby external partners, make oura vigilant commitment to security isdevelopment, collaborating with

defenses even stronger.

paramount.

product engineers to tackle real-

output isnʼt keeping pace withWe established the Sansan Global

significant incidents” and “maintaining

the volume of development items

Development Center in Cebu,a Protection of Individual Information

Regarding our target ofrequested. Deciding the order in

Philippines, in 2023. While the

Person rate of at least 80%.” What’s themaintaining a proportion ofwhich to tackle each productʼs

current staff numbers around 20,

rationale behind these decisions?

those qualified as Protection of

items is a pressing concern. Greater

weʼre aiming for 200 in the next 2

development power, in other words,

years. The Centerʼs purpose isnʼt

Security has always been vital toof at least 80%, itʼs mandatory thathigher productivity, would eliminate

to supplement our Japan-based

our company, and the principle ofour managerial staff obtain thisFinally, could you elaborate on

growth with the growth of thesuch worries. So, our immediate

resources but rather to developbalancing security and convenience

qualification, which is a pivotal

the strengths of the company’s

company and its business, making it

focus is on determining how to

products specifically for international

is embedded in our philosophy.

security measure. Achieving 80%

engineering organization?

easier for them to feel their careers

increase the number of development

markets. This includes customizingWeʼve been firmly committed tocertification in an organization

items we release each quarter andofferings like Sansan and Bill One forsecurity since our founding. As theof roughly 1,400 members is

A hallmark of our engineering

to bolster our overseas expansion in

how to boost organizational output.

overseas audiences and developing

CISO, Iʼm responsible for raisingchallenging, but itʼs an essential

organization is our development

the future, offering opportunities for

Above all, to maximize business,

new features specific to them. For

awareness of security throughout thepriority. Given that we handle aenvironment that seamlessly

our teams to be active on a global

company. I share security updates

range of business data, including

integrates technical expertise

stage. We intend to make the mostmonthly in all-hands meetings,

personal information, itʼs critical that

into our products, backed by theof these strengths to reinforce ourcovering recent cyber risks, industry

we engage in security measures

foundation of accumulated high-engineering organization.

case studies, and practical measuresacross our entire company.

precision business data.

Individual Information Person ratethat every team member canworld challenges.
Another big strength is ourenvironment that fosters ourengineersʼ growth. As individuals, ouremployees can align their personal

are progressing. Weʼre also planning

Our ability to deliver R&D

embrace. Going forward, we will

enhancements are inherently

outcomes relatively directly to ourcontinue to emphasize education

defensive, they might impair

users is another of our strengths.

and awareness to raise eachconvenience with strict rules andWe take pride in our robust

employeeʼs security acumen.

other restrictions. Instead of ensuring

R&D structure, and among ourWeʼre also strengthening our

Sansan, Inc.

However, since security

Aiming to Assemble theWorldʼs Premier Group ofEngineersDatagrowing incredibly fast, theneeds. Regrettably, our current

64

wide.

GovernanceWith many of our business lines

Balance Security andConvenience

Strategies

and energizing Japanʼs tech sector.

How does the engineering

within our Information Security

Story

Realizing BusinessMaximization

We chose to set up in thesafety at the cost of efficiency,

researchers are data analysts andsecurity framework. As in the

we must consider measures thattalent skilled in image recognition,world in general, we face dailysafeguard security while notwhich gives us a significant

threats from cyberattacks. We

compromising operational efficiency.

source of competitive advantage.

constantly evaluate our range ofBluntly speaking, if not using various

Our research objectives are not

defense and response granularity

services or tools was the best

academically advanced output, but

Kenji Shiomi
Director, Executive Officer, CISO, DPO,
Engineering Division Head

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

R&D

- Sansan Labs
such as seminars and exhibitions, instead of sales andmarketing staff writing them.
The 5-Minute Securities Report summarizes theissues and current status of four key topics in corporate
securities reports̶management/organization, market
environment, products/services, and governance̶into
text that is readable in 5 minutes.

Story

Our unceasing focus since our founding on accurately digitizing business cards has made our technology for
digitizing analog information a source of competitive advantage. Beyond business cards̶evidence of peopleʼs
encounters̶the data we now handle has expanded to include evidence of encounters between companies, suchas invoices and contracts. To strengthen this core technology and generate new value enhancements by utilizing
business data, we have established a research and development department specializing in handling data.

Sansan Labs, which provides experimental featuresdeveloped by the R&D department, also carries out R&D
in generative AI and functions in 2023 to boost sales andmarketing efficiency by leveraging GPTʼs text generation
capabilities and high summarization accuracy.
The Seminar Recruitment Email Creator automaticallygenerates email copy to attract attendees for events

Strategies- Leveraging GPT in Contract One

R&D Policy
potential for resolving various challenges througheffective data utilization. Consequently, we engage in
R&D with a strong awareness of the importance of thevalue provided by utilizing data.

documents summarized concisely in a format similar
to bullet points that is understandable without legal
expertise. This enables not only legal staff but also sales
staff unfamiliar with specialized legal jargon to easily
grasp contract outlines.
Governance

The R&D department advances our core technologies
and applies them in new business areas, creating
advantages in each product. Moreover, as the scope ofthe business data we handle grows, there is increased

We have been working to enhance the functionality ofContract One to increase its value. In 2023, we added afeature that uses GPT to summarize contract documents.
Users can search for necessary contracts by company
name, move to the AI Summary tab, and view the- Supporting Sansan/Bill One Sales Activities

R&D Organization
systems, ensuring rapid application of R&D outcomes inour products. The departmentʼs data engineers designand develop data analysis platforms, contributing to ouroperations by organizing a variety of business data.

Pursuing Outcomes and Speed in R&D*1 Kaggle hosts competitions for data scientists worldwide to compete on designing
the best models for specific challenges. About 10 Japanese data scientists hold the
top-level title of Kaggle Grandmaster.

R&D Examples
The R&D departmentʼs efforts create various
technological advantages in each of our products andits research results are also used in sales activities,
contributing greatly to our overall business growth.

Various R&D Initiatives
Image Processing/
Recognition

Natural Language Processing

Company
keywords

Emailsignature
extraction

Machine Learning

Extracting
companylogos

News
distribution

Data Science,
Causal Inference

Name-based
data
consolidation

Automating
input

Digitizing documents

New business
Sales(In-house tasks)

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Sansan, Inc.

Data Visualization,
Product Management
Sansan Labs

Recommendations

who are likely to cancel their contracts. We also conduct
R&D to support various tasks, such as displaying a healthscore indicating the relationship with the customer,
automatically generating usage reports showing existingusersʼ access status and actual use of functions, among
other data.

Data

As of the end of May 2023, the R&D department has 30
members, including specialists with diverse backgrounds
and expertise. For example, alongside data scientists
active on Kaggle *1, we have researchers from humanities
fields such as the social sciences and economics,
all undertaking R&D to enhance product value. The
department also has engineers who handle design,development, and implementation of features andWe are making efforts to utilize business data
aggregated in company-wide databases to support
our sales activities. For example, for customer successstaff handling ongoing support for existing clients, wedeveloped functions for recommending which accounts
to focus resources on and alerting staff about customers

A/B testing,
impactverification

Engineering Division,
R&D Department
Deputy Head

At Sansan, we place importance on integrating R&D with businessand are committed to delivering results. Even if a measure istechnically meritorious, if misaligned with business direction, we willseek optimal alternatives. We also value researchersʼ willingness tosolve problems on their own initiative. When the R&D department
was still new, R&D efforts were based on product team requests, but
now researchers themselves look at the productsʼ purpose, actively
identifying issues and taking the lead in finding solutions. For example,
researchersʼ experiencing first-hand Bill Oneʼs invoice receipt andscanning workflow sparked improvement ideas. This mindset not
only boosts business results but also researcher motivation. We also
obsess over swiftly providing R&D results to products. For instance,in new functionality development at Sansan Labs, we aim for a oneweek timeframe from idea to feature provision. By pursuing thefastest turnaround time possible, we accelerate R&D cycles and drive
business results through speed.

Takenori Oshima
Improving sales efficiency (sales)
Preventing churn, promoting usage (customer success)

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Information Security- Education on Information Security- Third-Party Certifications
We are committed to obtaining third-party securityrelated certifications and periodically renewing them toensure that users can use our services safely and securely.
For example, we obtained Privacy Mark in 2007. In 2022,

2023, we established long-term quantitative targets for
FY2029 for each material issue. We are now working
on measures to achieve zero significant incidents andmaintain a Protection of Individual Information Person
qualifications rate of at least 80%.

- Technical Measures
We implement various security measures with the goalof providing safe services. These include vulnerability

Materiality Targets

Balance Security and Convenience

Materila Issue

FY2029 Target

Provide safe and stableinfrastructure services

Number of major incidents

Ensure robust protection of data
privacy and information security

Proportion of thosequalified as Protectionof Individual Information
PersonFY2022 Result0
Maintained at
80% or higher

0

82.3%

Encryption of All Data
Center Transmissions
Alongside establishingfirewalls, all externaltransmissions to our data
centers when accessedfrom outside are made withadvanced encryption using
user-authenticated HTTPS.

Management Structure
We strictly manage information assets under personal
information protection and information security policies.
Our directors serve as the CISO *1 and DPO *2 to ensure
quick and comprehensive responses to privacy andsecurity risks. Our dedicated Information Security
Departmentʼs CSIRT *3 monitors potential threats, systemvulnerabilities, and signs of cyber-attacks, and develops
response policies and procedures. Since our founding

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Sansan, Inc.

Vulnerability and
Penetration Testing by
Security Specialists

Deleting Images After
Business Cards Are
ScannedWe hire external organizations
to find system vulnerabilities
and conduct penetration
testing based cyber-attacks,
so we can check our security
level and fix any problems.

Sansan scanners containsoftware that prevents
unauthorized external access.
Image data is deleted fromthe scanners after businesscards are scanned.

High Service Availability
All our servers are loadbalanced, ensuring prompt
service recovery in the event ofa failure. Our data centers arealso redundantly configured tominimize the risk of functionaland service outages in theevent of a disaster.

CSIRT Initiatives
in 2007, we have maintained a Personal Information
Protection Management System (PMS) and a robust
data protection environment. We employ the latest
security technology to monitor important information at
all times.
*1 Chief Information Security Officer*2 Data Protection Officer*3 Computer Security Incident Response Team

Engineering Division, Information Security Department,
CSIRT Group
Group Manager

Information Security Initiatives
Our services facilitate usersʼ management and use ofimportant data, including personal information. Carefulhandling of information is therefore a top management

assessments and penetration testing by our specialized
in-house departments.
Data

Area

our products Sansan and Bill One obtained ISO/IEC 27001
certification, an international standard for information
security. These certifications strengthen our information
security and give our services further credibility.

GovernanceAmong the five priority areas identified in 2022, under“Balance Security and Convenience”, we identified“Provide safe and stable infrastructure services”
and “Ensure robust protection of data privacy andinformation security” as material issues. In August

Strategies

Material Issues (Priority Issues)

information protection. They receive training upon hiring
and annually, and the director in charge updates theentire staff monthly on security initiatives and topics.
We have strict information asset handling procedures,such as prohibiting storage of personal and confidential
information on PCs. Our Internal Auditing Department
appoints security committee members from among
employees to strengthen security awareness through theuse of a mutual security auditing system.

Story

Convenience and security often clash in the development of cloud services. Maintaining a delicate balance between
the two is crucial for enhancing business productivity. Our corporate philosophy aims at balancing security andconvenience. We therefore have made this a key area of focus. Apart from ensuring convenience, we will also
implement measures to maintain data privacy and information security, thereby providing society with highly safe
and stable solutions.

To encourage correct understanding of the Act on
the Protection of Personal Information and safe data
management, all our executives and employees must
acquire Protection of Individual Information Person
qualifications, with a FY2029 target of maintaining an
acquisition rate of 80%+. Salary increases are, in principle,
suspended if an employee does not pass the exam withina certain period after joining the company. Employees
regularly learn about information security and personal

priority. We further minimize risk through rigorous security
training for all executives and employees, third-party
certification, various technical measures, and other efforts.

Our CSIRT group implements surveillance systems to guard against
various threats. CSIRT collects and monitors data logs to ensure robustand effective responses to external attacks and suspicious activities. If
any suspicious event is detected, a response is immediately decided uponand coordinated with the relevant departments. We undergo annual
penetration tests that inform how we strengthen our monitoring processes
and now include our products in log collection. To bolster product security,
CSIRT and product teams collaborate right from the design stage. Thisapproach not only ensures safety at an early stage, but also curtails thepotentially expanding costs of post-release countermeasures. We also
consistently revisit our security protocols, including the rollout of twofactor authentication for our existing products.

Tatsuya Kawamura

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Environment- Scan for Trees: Tree-Planting Activities

We recognize that addressing global environmental issues is extremely important for sustainable social andeconomic development, and a universal challenge worldwide. To help resolve these issues, we are working totransition to a decarbonized society and conserve water resources and biodiversity through forest conservation,
while promoting conservation of the natural environment through our business activities. Additionally, by proactively
disclosing the status of our activities, we will promote communication with society on environmental matters.

needed in disaster-affected areas. The number of trees
planted is based on the number of documents digitizedthrough our Sansan, Bill One, and Contract One solutions.
Paper documents such as business cards, invoices, andStory

In the Scan for Trees project, trees are planted where
Number oftrees planted:

14,787(as of September 30, 2023)

contracts often start from wood. This project is designed
to enrich aspects of the natural environment, such as
Strategies

forests and water, through our solutions. Thus far, wehave planted trees in Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture, andOsaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, which were affected by theMaterial Issues (Priority Issues)

2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, and in Yamato Town,
Kamimashiki District, Kumamoto Prefecture, which was

FY2029, including carbon neutrality for the combined
values of Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions. At the same time,
we are striving to reach 120 million uses of our paperlessfunctionality, enabling business data exchange in thecloud through our solutions, without paper.

damaged by the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquake. More than
10,000 trees have been planted since the project began.
We now also count digital documents, such as virtual
GovernanceAmong the five priority areas identified in 2022, under“Conserve the Environment Through Business,” werecognized “Address climate change issues” and “Usenatural capital efficiently” as materialities. In August
2023, we established long-term quantitative targets forbusiness cards and PDF invoices. Through these efforts,
we support the recovery of forests and reconstruction ofdisaster-affected areas even as online work becomes
more commonplace.

Materiality Targets
Material Issue

FY2029 Target

Address climate change
issuesScope 1 + 2 *1

Use natural capitalefficiently

Number of uses of
paperless functions in
our services *2

Conserve the Environment
Through Business

FY2022 Result

Carbon neutral

851 t-CO2

120 million

13 million

Biodiversity*1 Scope 1 is calculated by aggregating direct GHG emissions from our own offices and facilities. Scope 2 is calculated by aggregating by indirect GHG emissions from the use ofpurchased electricity and thermal energy in each office.
*2 Results for the Companyʼs services are aggregated for Sansan, Bill One, Contract One, and Eight.

Initiatives to Conserve the Natural Environment
We recognize the importance of understanding ourbusiness activitiesʼ impact on nature and are committed
to taking informed and appropriate conservation actions.
For example, we allocate a portion of our profits to treeplanting activities, aiming to conserve water resources
and biodiversity through forest preservation. A defining

feature of our primary services is that they lessen theenvironmental footprint by digitizing analog information.
By expanding and promoting these services, as well as
advancing digital transformation (DX) and championing
paperless initiatives, we will contribute to conservation of
the natural environment.

- Support for Paperless Business Operations Through Provided Services

70

Our primary services share the ability to digitize

and Eight address this by enabling virtual business card

documents, thereby supporting corporate digitalexchange, while Bill One makes it possible to receive

transformation. In particular, paper documents suchand issue invoices in the cloud. Exchanging businessas business cards, invoices, and contracts are creating

data in this way facilitates paperless environments andoperational efficiency issues for companies. Sansan

contributes to environmental conservation.

Sansan, Inc.

Data

Area

NPO Environmental Relations

Atsuko Suzuki, President

NPO Environmental Relations undertakes the “Present Trees”
project, which plants trees in places needing reforestation suchas damaged forests and unforested land, enlists supporters,interacts with local residents, and nurtures the forest for 10 years.
We have contributed to reforestation and regional revitalizationin 50 locations nationwide. Sansan has supported this projectthrough “Scan for Trees,” reforesting approximately 5 hectares. We
are truly grateful to everyone at the company. Forests play many
vital roles such as providing clean water, fostering beautiful natureand diverse organisms, and preventing global warming. With 70%
of Japan covered in forest, creating forests builds the nation. The
intensifying “Nature Positive” *3 and “30 by 30” *4 initiatives involve
the government certifying areas with conserved biodiversity as
Nature Coexistence Sites and subsequently registering them in aninternational database as OECMs. *5 On the other hand, the numberof barren clear-cut areas unable to be replanted is increasing, taking
over 100 years to revert to forest. To expand OECMs in disasterprone Japan, rapidly decreasing barren land is imperative, and “Scanfor Trees” is effective for this purpose. We hope to collaborate with
Sansan on biodiversity to achieve “30 by 30.”
*3 Halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030
*4 Target to effectively conserve at least 30% of land and sea as healthy ecosystems by 2030
*5 Areas outside protected zones like national parks that contribute to conserving biodiversity

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Disclosure Based on TCFD Recommendations

Climate Change-Related Risks and Opportunities

development and securing foundations for peopleʼs

climate change business risks and opportunities,

livelihoods. We support the Task Force on Climate-related

and enhancing our response to them. This is vital

Financial Disclosuresʼ (TCFDʼs) recommendations andfor transitioning to a low-carbon economy and amake disclosures under this framework as follows.

Story

Sansan has a system for identifying and monitoring

1) Identifying Risks
Profit Impact (Annual)Type

Decreased frequency
and significance of using
some of our services,which digitize paper
business cards, invoices,
contracts, etc., to enhance
productivity.

Department, and Finance & Accounting Department, among
others, and are reviewing our responses. The Board scrutinizes
annual reports from the project detailing climate change-related
metrics and business risks and opportunities and reflects them inour business strategies and plans.

MarketOur Board of Directors makes policies and decisions that help
achieve sustainability. Climate change is a top-priority material
issue for us, and, under the responsibility and supervision of theRepresentative Director, we have established a Climate Change
Response Project comprising the IR Team, Office Strategy

2. Strategy

Societal demand andneed for clean energy
rises, resulting in surging
energy prices and, due
to global warming, anincrease in the coolingload for informationand communicationequipment.

Increased operationalcosts due to higher prices
for resources such asservers and electricity thatare essential for Sansan,
which primarily operates
on a SaaS business model.

and responses.
Our analysis covers all operations at short (present to 2025),
medium (up to 2030), and long (up to 2050) timeframes. We
have categorized the profit impact by annual amount: less than 1billion yen is “small”; 1 to 3 billion yen is “medium”; and exceeding
3 billion yen is “large.”

Many countries andregions tighten regulations
related to GHG emissions,with new carbon taxes
or higher tax rates being
introduced as part ofcarbon pricing.

Increased costs topurchase non-fossil
certificates and credits
for carbon offsetting,including tax burden.

Domain-specific directors collaborate with the Climate Change
Response Project to analyze climate scenarios, identify businessrisks and opportunities, assess their importance and profit impact,
and consider measures. Findings are presented annually to theBoard of Directors, which reflects them in business strategies
and plans. Important climate change-related risks are managed
together with other risks identified by internal audits and othercompany-wide analyses.

The intensity andfrequency of natural
disasters such as torrential
rains and floods increase,causing significant
damage.

Flooding of the servers we
use and the facilities that
digitize paper invoices andother documents, causing
service outages, as well as
damage to the documentsof our user companies that
we store, diminishing ourservicesʼ value.

Medium to long

2030 for Scope 1 and 2 emissions. As we strive to meet it, we will
also consider various internal and external factors to establish a
reduction target for Scope 3 emissions.

Acute

Our past 3 yearsʼ GHG emissions, *1 our climate change metric,
are shown below.
In FY2023, we set the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by

Physical risks

4. Metrics and Targets

Medium to long

Law and regulation

3. Risk Management

Medium to long

Transition risks

We have examined the following temperature rise scenarios(mainly from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changeʼs
Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) and Representative
Concentration Pathways) to understand how business conditions
would be affected, and better respond and adapt: limited to
1.5°C (SSP1-1.9), below 2°C (SSP1-2.6), and a 4°C increase (SSP58.5). The table on the right shows our business risks, opportunities,

Short to medium

1. Governance

1.5°C/Below
2°C Scenario

Small

Small tomediumSmall

Small tomedium4°C Scenario

Small

Offer added value
equivalent to or greaterthan that of digitizing
analog information by
expanding convenientfeatures focusedon the use of digital
information, thereby
improving our platformʼsvalue.

Small

Reduce costs by
optimizing the
procurement of essential
resources and materials,
including servers andelectricity. And improve
efficiency throughenergy-saving measures
to reduce energy
consumption.

Small

Reduce tax burdensand carbon offsetting
costs by expanding
the use of renewableenergy and improving
energy efficiency
through energy-saving
measures.

Small to large

Ensure service continuity
during natural disasters
by using multiple servers
for system redundancy,
decentralizing essential
service operationsites, and preparing
emergency manuals
as part of our business
continuity plan (BCP).

GHG Emissions *6*7*8
Item

Unit

FY2020

FY2021

2) Identifying Opportunities

FY2022

t-CO2

0

0

0

Scope 2 (location-based)

t-CO2

477

639

840

Scope 2 (market-based)

t-CO2

525

668

851

Scope 1 and 2 (market-based)

t-CO2

525

668

851

Scope 3t-CO2-

15,67918,638

Scope 1, 2, and 3 (market-based)

t-CO2

-

16,347

19,489

Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions intensity(per net sales)t-CO2/hundred
million yen

-

81.7

78.2

Sansan, Inc.

Profit Impact (Annual)Type

Scenario Analysis

Opportunity

Product/
service

Overall environmental
awareness in society
grows, increasing
demand for services
that help reduce paperuse. Also, with risingtemperatures heightening
the risk of infectious
diseases, non-face-toface and contactlessbusiness activities
increase, elevating theimportance of using digital
information.

Increasing demandfor our range of digitaltransformation (DX)solutions that help reduce
the use of paper while
streamlining various
workflows via the use ofdigital information.

Timeframe

Medium to long

Scope 1

*6 Non-consolidated results of Sansan, Inc., aggregated, covering 97.7% of the groupʼs business (non-consolidated sales as a percentage of consolidated sales) as of FY2022.
*7 Scope 1 aggregates direct GHG emissions from our owned offices and facilities. Scope 2 aggregates indirect GHG emissions through each officeʼs use of purchased electricity,
thermal energy, etc. Scope 3 aggregates GHG emissions throughout the entire value chain (categories 1-15), excluding Scope 1 and 2.
*8. Results prior to FY2021 have been recalculated, owing to refinements in the aggregation method.

72

Response Measures

Data

Overall environmental
awareness in society
grows, leading togradually decreased useof paper-based businesstools and increased use ofdigital information.

Timeframe

Governance

Risks

Strategies

Scenario Analysis

decarbonized society, while ensuring stable economic

1.5°C/Below
2°C Scenario

Small tomedium4°C Scenario

Small

Response Measures

Expand convenientfeatures focused on theuse of digital information
to improve the value
offered to users, andstrengthen sales andmarketing activities tostimulate even greater
demand.

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Chapter 3

Governance
Chapter 3 explains the governance supporting our sustainable businessgrowth, including interviews with outside directors. It also includes
quantitative targets and initiatives related to material issues (priority issues)
for corporate governance, compliance, and risk management.

CONTENTS
P76 - Outside Directorsʼ Messages

P88 - ComplianceP80 - Corporate GovernanceP90 - Risk Management

P86 - Directors

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03
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Reflecting on 1 Year Since
Appointment as an Outside
Director
I assumed the role of Outside76

evident in the companyʼs growth

important to have systems in place& Supervisory Committee members

momentum, represent Sansanʼs

to check and verify how initiatives

use opportunities when theyʼreculture and translate to the speed

are executed, what results they

together to receive progress reportsof management decisions at Board

produce, and what risks they entail.

from investment strategy members

meetings.

The Role of Outside
Directors Serving as Audit& Supervisory Committee
Members

Improving Monitoring
For effective and appropriatemonitoring, we are strengthening

when necessary. This allows an agile
and flexible process.

Evaluating Board
Effectivenesscoordination with the secretariats
for compliance and the Audit &We evaluate Board effectivenessThe role of outside directors, inSupervisory Committee. Especiallyannually through a questionnaire

response to shareholder demands, isfor internal whistleblowingthat all directors complete. Thisto oversee management with a view

reports shared by the complianceexamines how well the Board fulfills

to achieving sustainable growth andsecretariat, we carefully listen

the roles our shareholders expect.

medium-to-long-term improvement

to each case, scrutinize theBy working through the PDCA cycleof corporate value, which makes it

facts, then discuss within thebased on the evaluation results,

important to candidly state opinions.

Committee whether individual

we aim to strengthen governance.

I am chair of the Audit & Supervisory

resolution is warranted or whether

The Boardʼs responsibilities, size,

Committee, which is responsible fororganizational/systemic issues

member composition, meeting

operational and financial audits ofare involved, and we respondfrequency, and decision-making

directorsʼ execution of duties. In thisaccordingly.

process are appropriate. The

capacity, over the past year, I have

In the various matters theinformation provided to the Board

taken the lead in ensuring meetings

Board deliberates, materials thealso seems adequate, with materials

donʼt just become places to listencompany prepares in advancesharing a multi-faceted analysis of

to and approve internal reports

indicate risks and pros/cons havethe pros, cons, etc., of each proposal.

and explanations, but rather thatbeen thoroughly examined, so

The Board being chaired by CEOeach Committee member leverages

there arenʼt many agenda items I

Terada, rather than an outside

their expertise to state opinions andfeel pose compliance risks. Points

director, may become an issue tocompile suggestions for the Board.

that outside directors raise areconsider depending on Sansanʼs

As a Committee comprising only

reported to the Board early on, andfuture growth stage, but it does notsecretariat has handled this very

organization and review of mattersoutside directors, we coordinate

thereʼs a noticeable intent to make

impede substantive discussions.

diligently, so I donʼt currently see

for Board deliberation are carefully

especially closely with the Internal

improvements satisfactory to us. For

Audit & Supervisory Committee

any major issues. In Board meetings,

examined internally, leaving me

Auditing Department responsible

our part, we donʼt conclude matters

meetings held after Board meetings

Chair and CEO Terada personallywith the impression of a company

for internal controls, consciouslywith the Board resolution for internal

provide opportunities for eachexplains how the executive sidethat doesnʼt let issues or suggestions

establishing and enhancing a

projects and investments discussed;

member to reflect on Board
deliberations, based on their

Director in August 2022. I had

considered each proposal. Whenraised at Board meetings end there,

system to quickly comprehend

we request subsequent follow-up

heard Sansan described as aoutside directors request additional

but instead responds earnestly.

information that could potentiallyreports. If the returns and synergies

own expertise and specialization,and freely discuss any questions,
opinions, or perceived risks.

“serious company” beforehand,

information or materials, a sincere

An atmosphere is also fostered at

impact company management.

initially assumed for investments

and over this past year, Iʼve come

response is provided by the next

Board meetings wherein outside

The discussions with executive

donʼt materialize as expected, weto understand what that means.

meeting. There have also been

directors can freely state opinions

officers also provide highly

step up our monitoring, including

At first, I was concerned whether

instances where questions raised

and proposals. Since 2022, outside

meaningful opportunities forby reconfirming future strategies.

the information-sharing system

by outside directors prompted Mr.

directors have held discussions

outside directors to deepen ourThis past year, there was a case infor outside directors would be

Terada to review the discussion

with executive officers, who openly

understanding of the company.

which we continued deliberations

adequate, as Sansan lacks any full-process and direct the executive sideshare not only their enthusiasm on

The Boardʼs quick decision-making

for about six months on the transfer

time Audit & Supervisory Committee

to rectify and improve points thatprojects and products they oversee

helps improve corporate value,of an equity interest in an investee,

An optional Nomination andmembers. But the Committee

werenʼt considered internally. The

but also medium-to-long-term

and appropriate monitoring is vital

including the transfer priceʼs

Remuneration Advisory Committee

Sansan, Inc.

Data

Maki Suzuki

no scheduled Board meetings, Audit

GovernanceOutside Director, Audit & Supervisory
Committee Member (Chair of the Audit &Supervisory Committee and Chair of theNomination and Remuneration Advisory
Committee)

appropriateness. Even on days withrespecting fast decision-making, It is

Strategies

Outside Directorsʼ Message

to ensure it goes smoothly. Whilethem. I feel this passion and agility,

Story

Further Strengthening
Monitoring to Support
Agile Decision-Making

visions and challenges to achieve

Establishing a Nomination
and Remuneration
Advisory Committee

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03_Governancemembersʼ free discussion of a2023, and I was appointed chair.

specific theme, while sharing the

The nomination, appointment, andexecutive sideʼs passion and thedismissal of directors, as well as

outside directorsʼ insights, could spurdetermining their remuneration,

new realizations and ideas while

are vital to monitoring. With thisfurther improving monitoring. I hope

Committeeʼs establishment, wethat such open discussions involving

reorganized the remuneration

outside directors will help raisesystem and introduced

corporate value.

Data

Fast decision-making is one ofvarious aspects of management. For
instance, to achieve further growth,
the company reverted from a multiproduct sales structure to a divisional

to see internal appointment ofmajor progress in governance fromof orders and other factors. The

female directors. We also need

response to trust-type stock options

to closely monitor our proactive

is another recent good example.

talent development initiatives.

Here, the company decided to

Human resources are directly

retroactively apply withholding

linked to business growth, andtax to exercised options andregarding director nomination andremuneration.
I recognize the issue of how much
we can stimulate and enrichdiscussions in this Committee
as my responsibility. Introducing
performance-linked compensation
director nominations will require
further discussion on how muchoutside directors should proactively
provide input, based on existing

improved employee motivation andengagement and controll of theturnover rate, which are positives.
However, post-hiring development
seems somewhat trial and error;so, while I donʼt perceive any
major issues for now, we need tomonitor the impact of Sansanʼsprovide financial reimbursement
or alternative compensation to
directors and employees for theirincreased burden. This consideredboth immediate concerns and longterm perspectives, demonstrating
incredible teamwork and swift
decision-making. CEO Teradaʼssincerity in personally explaining
this decision to employees is360-degree feedback system.

more dynamic personnel evaluation

Formulating a succession plan is alsosystem, with potential downgrades

an important long-term issue, anddepending on performance, on

I hope to develop a plan that earns

human resources. Challenges arising

the understanding of shareholders.

from workforce and organizational

and to encourage multi-faceted

expansion, including leave andreview. I donʼt want to impede quick

turnover rates, are also discussed at

decision-making while the company

each Audit & Supervisory Committee

has growth momentum, but I hopemeeting. When investigating internal

to properly fulfill my monitoring role

whistleblowing cases, we willthrough expertise- and experience-

continue to check for any hidden risks

based advice on legal risks, the basis

Issues for Strengthening
GovernanceWe must address issues acrossdifferent timeframes to further
strengthen our governance. A shortterm consideration I propose isestablishing opportunities, separate
from Board meetings, to hear
individual directorsʼ views. Board
meetings involve sharing polishedmaterials and substantial discussionof agenda items, including medium-in the personnel system.
A long-term issue is formulating a
succession plan. Internal discussions

While such flexible decisions
do often succeed, the outside
directorsʼ role is to question them

Sansan, given its business of handling critical corporate information,must prepare for a range of risks, including information security.
Current efforts seem substantial, with preventative measures andguidelines for the occurrence of risks that are currently forseeable,and quantitative targets set for the material issue of “Ensure robust
protection of data privacy and information security.” However,with the company broadening its business domain and expanding
overseas, it must watch for new risks never faced before. We therefore
will strengthen risk management through exhaustive discussions.

- Sustainability

for decisions, and other matters,
thereby helping to bolster Sansanʼscorporate value.

from now, as part of deliberations on
Outside Director,
Audit & Supervisory
Committee Member

our purpose. As an outside director,

and business direction. However,discussions, which will help develop

time constraints limit free discussion

successor talent and a succession plan.

Maki Suzuki

Outside Director,
Audit & Supervisory
Committee Member

Toko Shiotsuki

like to be, for example, 100 years

I hope to actively engage in such

Sansan, Inc.

commendable.

- Risk Management

have begun on what Sansan would

to-long-term management issues

of topics not on agendas. Board

Toru Akaura

Data

including non-financial metrics anda recent revision of salaries has

Outside Director,
Audit & Supervisory
Committee Member

Governancesystem based on the current state

Based on my years of experience at a venture capital firm
engaging with company management teams, I highly appreciate
Sansanʼs Board atmosphere wherein outside directors can freely
state opinions, as well as the quick and sincere response by insidedirectors like CEO Terada when outside input provides fresh insight.
To further strengthen the Boardʼs function and improve governancegoing forward, inside directors must fulfill accountability throughpreparation to stimulate discussion, while outside directors must
deepen their understanding of the companyʼs services and related
businesses.

Strategies

for directors. This represented

objectivity, and accountability- Board Discussions

Sansanʼs strengths, as seen acrossIn the medium-term, I hope

the perspective of independence,

Outside Directors Column

Toward Strengthening
Corporate Value

Story

was newly established in May

performance-linked compensation

78

02_Strategies

Sustainability is an important management topic, and I recognizethat itʼs of great interest to stakeholders. Sansan has undertaken
sustainability initiatives, including the establishment of material issues,
since 2022, and in 2023, internal directors set long-term quantitative
targets for the respective areas in which they were appointed asmateriality owners. I appreciate the progress-from-basics approach,but full-scale integration of sustainability and management has only
just begun. To further develop these efforts themselves, I intend to
firmly state opinions as an outside director and a stakeholder.

Taro Saito

Outside Director, Audit & Supervisory
Committee Member

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Data

Corporate GovernanceCorporate Governance Structure
As a company with an Audit & Supervisory Committee,
we have established a Nomination and Remuneration
Advisory Committee as an optional committee. We
have adopted our current governance structure on theStory

We recognize the importance of sustainably maximizing corporate and social value, as well as the need to gain
the continued trust of all stakeholders. Accordingly, we have defined “strengthening corporate governance” as apriority material issue and are undertaking various initiatives to further ensure sound and transparent management,
including enhancing Board oversight and thorough implementation of an internal control system.

belief that it can facilitate enhanced Board decisionmaking and oversight as well as swift business execution,
enabling transparent, fair, and speedy management
decision-making.

Material Issue (Priority Issue)

General Meeting of Shareholders
Appointment/
Dismissal

2023, we established a long-term quantitative target
for FY2029 for this material issue, namely raising thepercentage of female Board members to at least 30%, forwhich we are taking various measures.

Auditing/
Supervision

Directors

30% or higher

22.2%

We have taken a range of measures for enhancing
corporate governance to achieve managementsoundness and transparency.
In FY2022, we increased the number of independent
directors and established an optional Nomination
and Remuneration Advisory Committee to enhance
the independence, objectivity, and accountabilityof the Boardʼs functions related to nomination andremuneration.
Additionally, to further improve Board functionality,
performance-linked bonuses will be paid to directors(excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee members)
annually from FY2023 as a short-term incentive forbusiness performance improvements.

Progress in Strengthening Corporate Governance*1

FY2014・ Company established

FY2018・ Independent directors

・ Audit & Supervisory

appointed and increased

Committee system adopted
・ Outside directors appointed*1 Graph shows progress for each year ended in May.

80

Sansan, Inc.

FY2020

FY2022

FY2023・Outside directors appointed
・Established a Nomination andRemuneration Advisory Committee

・ Number of female directors increased
・ Changes to Board of Directors' resolution

on determination of individual
remuneration, etc.
・ Disclosure of skill matrix for each director

Reporting

Reporting

Cooperation

Direction
Cooperation

Representative Director

Internal Auditing Department
Reporting

ReportingDirection/Commands

Internal auditing

Auditing

Departments

Corporate Governance System
Organizational
Form

Company with Audit & Supervisory
Committee

Optional
Committees

Nomination and Remuneration
Advisory Committee

Directors

9 (including 4 outside directors)

Incentives Provided
to Directors

Performance-linked bonuses anda stock option system have been
introduced

Directorsʼ Terms

Directors: 1 year
(Directors serving on the Audit &Supervisory Committee: 2 years)

Accounting Auditor

KPMG AZSA LLC

Audit & Supervisory
Committee
Members

4 (including 4 outside directors)

Corporate
Governance Reporthttps://www.corp-sansan.com/
sustainability/governance/
corporate_governance/

・Adoption of

performance-linked
compensation

Appointment/Dismissal/
Supervision

Compliance Committee

Efforts to Enhance Corporate Governance

ReportingAppointment

Data

Strengthen corporate
governanceAppointment/
Consultation

Cooperation

Accounting Auditor

Ratio offemaleDirectors

FY2022 Result

Nomination and Remuneration
Advisory Committee

Establish a Firm Management
Structure to Support Rapid
Business Growth

FY2029 Target

Appointment/
Dismissal

Directors serving on the Audit &Supervisory Committee(excl. Directors serving on the Audit &Supervisory Committee)

Material Issue

Audit & Supervisory
Committee

Board of Directors

Materiality Target

FY2006

Appointment/
Dismissal

GovernanceAmong the five priority areas identified in 2022, wehave identified “Strengthen corporate governance” asa material issue under “Establish a Firm Management
Structure to Support Rapid Business Growth.” In August

Area

Strategies

Corporate Governance System

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03_Governance

Data

Supervisory Committee member with substantial financeand accounting knowledge.
We disclose director candidatesʼ skills matrix andreasons for nomination in shareholder meeting
convocation notices, etc., to present the appropriate skills
composition for our management team. Our independent
outside directors include those with entrepreneurshipexperience and concurrent roles as outside directors ofother companies, creating a structure where independentand objective perspectives can be expressed.

Composition of the Board of Directors

We established a Nomination and Remuneration
Advisory Committee on May 1, 2023. It comprises atleast three members appointed by Board resolution,with independent outside directors as a majority toensure independence. The chair is appointed from theindependent outside director members by Committee- Nomination and Remuneration Advisory Committee Activities
Ratio of Independent Directors

44%

44%

Ratio of Female Directors

22%

The Nomination and Remuneration Advisory Committee
was established on May 1, 2023, and has held one
meeting in FY2022 with 100% attendance by members.
Specific matters deliberated included policies andIn FY2022, we held 17 Board meetings with 100% director
attendance. Topics included management plans,business/investment strategies, and other fundamental

directorsʼ performance of duties at Board of Directors
and other meetings. They meet monthly to monitor
governance and its operational status, and to audit
and supervise directorsʼ daily activities, including
performance of duties. They also meet with the Internal
Auditing Department and accounting auditors, sharing
information for auditing.

- Audit & Supervisory Committee Activities
In FY2022, we held 13 Audit & Supervisory Committee
meetings, with 100% attendance. Main discussion topics
were audit policies and plans and advisory opinions on

Sansan, Inc.

to improve its functions and formulate various policies toensure our management is highly transparent.

- Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Board of Directors
matters on growth; organizational reforms and personnel
strategy to maximize net sales; sustainability matterssuch as material issues (priority issues); and governance.

Audit & Supervisory Committee
The Audit & Supervisory Committee comprises 4 directors(all independent outside directors). Together, they haveexpertise in areas such as legal affairs and accounting,executive experience at other companies, andindependent perspectives on corporate management.
Each brings their own professional ethics perspective
to management oversight. They give their opinions on

Data- Board Activities

procedures for nominating directors and determining
remuneration for directors (excluding Audit & Supervisory
Committee members).

Key Initiatives
To further enhance the level of corporate governance,
we evaluate the effectiveness of the Board of Directors

82

resolution. The Committee deliberates and provides
recommendations to the Board on matters including
nomination, dismissal, and remuneration of directors(excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee members) andother matters consulted by the Board. The Board makes
determinations based on Committee recommendations.

GovernanceRatio of Outside Directors

Nomination and Remuneration Advisory Committee

Strategies

Our Articles of Incorporation set the number of directors(excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee members)
at up to 8 and Audit & Supervisory Committee member
directors at up to 5. We currently have nine directors (7male, 2 female), appointed for balance of experience,
insight, competencies, and diversity, including gender,international perspective, and career. We aim to haveat least 30% female directors by FY2029 in view of theimportance of gender, at least one-third of directors
be independent outside directors, and at least 1 Audit &the status of their areas of responsibility and with therepresentative director to check his management policies,
offering opinions as a committee in response.

Story

Committee members.
The Audit & Supervisory Committee also held
discussions with each executive director to confirm

Board of Directors

nomination and remuneration of directors (excluding
Audit & Supervisory Committee members). Other topics
included approval of nominees for Audit & Supervisory

We conducted an annual effectiveness evaluation of
the Board of Directorsʼ business management, etc., asdelegated by shareholders. The Board incorporates
the results in its own PDCA cycle to enhance corporate
governance.
In FY2022, all directors were surveyed on Board
effectiveness. The Audit & Supervisory Committee
deliberated and expressed opinions on the results.
The Board then discussed the results, formed its
understanding, and decided on steps for improvement.
The evaluation confirmed the Boardʼs effectiveness,
mostly finding that its performance was appropriate or
mostly appropriate on the major assessment items: theBoardʼs responsibilities, its size and composition, meeting
frequency, its decision-making process, and the qualityof information it receives.
To continually improve Board effectiveness based on our
scale and social responsibility as a listed company, we
will provide opportunities to discuss mediun-to-long-term
management issues and business direction in director
training, foster multifaceted perspectives incorporating
outside director insights, and further strengthen ourmanagement foundation, as well as enhance information
provision to deepen outside directorsʼ understanding ofour business and direction and provide more materials
and information to aid Board deliberations.

- Policy and Process of Determining Remuneration
To determine policy for matters such as director
remuneration (excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee
members) the Board of Directors consults the Nomination
and Remuneration Advisory Committee and incorporates
its recommendations. The July 2023 Board meeting
partially revised the policy for FY2023 onward to pay

performance-linked bonuses as short-term incentive
compensation and, subject to the General Meeting of
Shareholdersʼ approval, to grant stock compensationtype stock options for directors as non-monetarycompensation (excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee
members).

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Data

Determination of the Amount of Individual Remuneration and Calculation Methods for Basic Remuneration(Fixed Monetary Remuneration) and Performance-Linked Compensation for Directors
against annual performance targets, set each year within
the limit resolved at the General Meeting of Shareholders
considering directorsʼ responsibilities and other factors.
Consolidated net sales, our foremost management indicator,
is used for annual performance targets. Remuneration for
Audit & Supervisory Committee directors is deliberated by all
Committee members and set within the limit resolved at theGeneral Meeting of Shareholders.

Directorsʼ individual remuneration (excluding Audit &Supervisory Committee members) may include price-linked
and stock compensation-type stock options as mediumto long-term incentives. Their ratio to basic remuneration,
appropriate limits, and conditions are set based on businessenvironment and other companiesʼ remuneration levels, etc., tomaximize directorsʼ performance and motivation, strengthen

correlation with the stock price, and encourage appropriate
risk-taking. A Board of Directors resolution is required for
introducing other non-monetary remuneration. The Board alsodecides, based on the Nomination and Remuneration Advisory
Committeeʼs recommendations, how such remuneration and its
amount (formula) are determined, and the proportion of eachtype for each individual.

Directorsʼ fixed remuneration is paid monthly. Performancelinked bonuses adopted as directorsʼ individual compensation(excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee members) are paid
at a fixed time in an annual lump sum. The timing of providing/

distributing price-linked and compensation-type stock options
is set based on factors such as past distributions and years ofservice. This does not preclude other compensation that may
arise separately.

- Strengthening of Group Governance
Under the Rules on Management of Subsidiaries, ourbasic policy for subsidiaries, we strive for a systemthat strengthens governance, including managementagreements with subsidiaries pursuant to these Rules.

- Policies Regarding Tax
We ensure and improve tax compliance and pay taxes
fairly, based on a strong sense of ethics and responsibility
to contribute to national and community development.

compensation-type stock options must be approved by theGeneral Meeting of Shareholders, and the meeting agenda
is determined by the Board based on the Nomination andRemuneration Advisory Committeeʼs recommendations.

- Policies and Procedures in Nominating Candidates for Directors and Dismissing
Directors
The Articles of Incorporation stipulate that directors(excluding Audit & Supervisory Committee members)
and Committee members shall not exceed 8 and 5,
respectively. We balance experience, knowledge, andskills, and value diversity when appointing them.
For non-Committee directors, we nominate people
with extensive relevant business knowledge andexperience, who should contribute greatly, fulfill theirduties as directors, and improve our corporate value.
For the Committee, we nominate individuals who canguide our management with their abundant experienceand knowledge, such as executives at other companies
or experts in law, accounting, and compliance.
The Representative Director proposes candidates
meeting these policies, and the Board makes nominations
based on the Nomination and Remuneration Advisory
Committeeʼs recommendations.
The Board monitors and supervises directorsʼ
performances, and, after consulting the Nomination andRemuneration Advisory Committee, will deliberate thedismissal of any director not meeting requirements.

- Internal Controls
To continually enhance corporate governance, we set up
and ensure full operation of an internal control system
based on our Basic Policies on Internal Control Systems.
Under these policies, directors and employees conduct
appropriate corporate activities with high ethicalstandards following our corporate philosophy.

84

Sansan, Inc.

Our Internal Auditing Department, an independent
body directly under the Representative Director, ensures
the systemʼs thorough operation. It conducts regular
audits to ensure compliance with laws, the Articles ofIncorporation, and internal regulations, advises on
uncovered issues, and monitors improvements.

Approach to
Taxation

We comply with laws and regulations in all countries andregions where we operate.

• We reduce taxation risks through taxation planning, fulfilling our responsibility as a taxpayer by appropriately
declaring and paying taxes.
• Our tax planning is not aimed at avoiding tax, such as using non-substantial entities in tax havens or arbitrarily
avoiding tax in a manner inconsistent with our business objectives.
• We calculate foreign transaction prices under each country or regionʼs laws and regulations and the armʼslength principle.
• We respond sincerely to authoritiesʼ disclosure requests and maintain good relationships with them.
• We clarify how to process transactions for which tax interpretations are unclear through thorough review with
tax advisors.

Data

Matters Related to Determining Remuneration Content
Individual remuneration for directors (excluding Audit &Supervisory Committee members) is determined by the
Board based on the Nomination and Remuneration Advisory
Committeeʼs recommendations. Price-linked and stock

The Internal Auditing Department regularly audits
subsidiaries to ensure compliance with laws, the Articles
of Incorporation, and internal regulations.

Governance

Determining the Timing and Conditions of Payment/Distribution of Director Remuneration

function smoothly. With access to key meetings anddocuments, it can promptly provide required materials.
It also arranges expenses-paid third-party training for
directors.

Strategies

Introduction and Determination of Non-Monetary Remuneration

We provide documents, explanations, etc., in advance tosupport fuller Board deliberations and directorsʼ auditing
and supervisory functions. A secretariat helps the Audit& Supervisory Committee, comprising outside directors,

Story

Individual monetary remuneration for directors (excluding Audit& Supervisory Committee members) comprises basic (fixedmonetary) remuneration and annual performance-linked
bonuses as short-term incentives for business performance
improvements. Individual basic remuneration is determinedannually within the limit resolved at the General Meeting of
Shareholders based on responsibilities, performance, ourbusiness performance, and the economy, etc. Individual
performance-linked bonuses are 0-200% based on progress- Training Policy for Directors- Constructive Dialogue with Shareholders
Proactive dialogue with shareholders and other investors
for properly grasping and reflecting their expectations,concerns, needs, etc., into our management and activities
is essential for sustainable growth and medium-to-longterm enhancement of corporate value.
In FY2022, we actively sought such interactive
dialogue, including meeting with institutional investors at

Policy on
Constructive
Dialogue with
Shareholders

conferences, and CEO and CFO visits to them overseas.
We held 376 meetings: 127 with Japanese institutional
investors, 180 with overseas institutional investors, 54 withsecurities analysts, and 15 others. We held 4 financial
results briefings for institutional investors and 1 individual
investor briefing.

• In principle, the IR department, overseen by the Director, Executive Officer, CFO, and Managing Executive(Corporate Division), handles dialogue with shareholders, with CEO and CFO participation where reasonable.
• The IR department promotes constructive dialogue through regular exchanges and information-gathering
together with relevant departments. We also identify shareholders from the shareholder registry at the end ofeach May to understand our shareholder composition.
• Our CEO and CFO regularly present financial results briefings for analysts and institutional/individual investors,
disclosing presentations on our website.
• The IR department compiles views and concerns from shareholder dialogues, reports them to the Board as
appropriate, and discusses responses with relevant departments.
• We adhere to Timely Disclosure Regulations and Insider Trading Control Regulations, established to manage
insider information.

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Data

Directors
Story

Position

Representative Director &CEO, *1 CPO *2

Kei Tomioka

Kenji Shiomi

Yuta Ohma

MuneyukiHashimotoDirector, Executive Officer,
CFO, *7 Managing Executive(Corporate Division)

Director, Executive Officer,
COO, *3 Managing Executive(Sansan Division, Bill One
Division)

Director, Executive Officer,
CISO, *4 DPO, *5 Managing
Executive (Engineering
Division, Eight Division)

Director, Executive Officer,
CHRO, *6 Managing Executive(Human Resources Division)

Maki Suzuki

Toru Akaura

Toko Shiotsuki

Strategies

Chika Terada

Name

Taro Saito

Outside Director, Audit &Supervisory Committee
MemberOutside Director, Audit &Supervisory Committee
MemberOutside Director, Audit &Supervisory Committee
MemberOutside Director, Audit &Supervisory Committee
MemberOutside Independent

Outside Independent

Outside Independent

Outside Independent

Sansan Global Pte. Ltd. CEO
Outside Director of Unipos Inc.

Sansan Global Development
Center, Inc. President−

Outside Director of Unipos Inc.

Attorney at Shintaro Sato Law
OfficeRepresentative Director of
Incubate Fund KK, Outside
Director of S-Pool, Inc.,
Outside Audit & Supervisory
Board Member of Double
Standard Inc., Outside Directorof jig.jp co., ltd., External
Director of ispace, Inc.

Director (Full-time Audit
and Supervisory Committee
member) of CyberAgent, Inc.

Representative Director of dofInc., Outside Director of CARTAHOLDINGS Inc., Outside
Director of for Startups, Inc.,
Outside Director of ZOZO, Inc.

ProfileChika began his career with
MITSUI & CO., LTD. Duringthat time, he relocated to
Silicon Valley to help local
venture firms develop their
Japan-focused efforts. In
2007, he founded Sansan,
Inc., providing digitaltransformation (DX) services
that change how people
work, including the namesake
Sansan sales DX solution. In
2021, Sansan, Inc. was listedon the First Section of theTokyo Stock Exchange (nowTSE Prime Market Index).

Kei began his career with
Oracle Corporation Japan,
and was based in Shanghai
and Bangkok, taking chargeof market development acrossGreater China (China, Hong
Kong, Taiwan), Southeast Asia,
and India. In 2007, Kei cofounded Sansan, Inc. and has
led business efforts for Sansan,
the sales DX solution. As COO,
he oversees Sansan and otherB2B SaaS businesses. From2023, he has served as CEO of
Sansan Global Pte. Ltd.

Kenji co-founded Sansan, Inc.
in 2007, after working withBussan System Integration
Co., Ltd. (now MITSUIKNOWLEDGE INDUSTRY CO.,LTD.), where he designed anddeveloped mail systems for
major mobile carriers. Since
2012, he has been in chargeof the Eight business cardapp. Now as Engineering
Division Head, he oversees thecompany-wide technology
strategy and strengthens its
engineering group. In 2023,
he also assumed the role ofPresident of Sansan Global
Development Center, Inc.

Yuta began his career at ahuman resources company,
where he helped launch aconsulting service. He thenwent independent and served
as a director for a venture
firm in recruitment. Yuta
joined Sansan, Inc. in 2010as a Manager in sales andlater became the head of HR.
As Chief Human Resources
Officer (CHRO), he leads
strategies for optimizing thevalue and productivity of
Sansanʼs workforce.

Muneyuki worked for foreign
securities companies in Tokyo
and New York for nearly 9
years, providing M&A andfinancing advisory services.
He then moved to a groupcompany of the Development
Bank of Japan Inc. to workin private equity. He joined
Sansan, Inc. in 2017, and was
appointed CFO in 2018 tolead the companyʼs financial
strategy.

Maki, an attorney at law, wasadmitted to the New York StateBar Association after working
since 2003 at TMI Associates.
She joined the Shintaro Sato
Law Office in 2017 and has
been a member of the DaiNi Tokyo Bar Association since2021. She became an Outside
Director of Sansan, Inc. inAugust 2022. Her expertiseis in corporate legal affairs
and compliance, and she
provides recommendations
from a legal and diversity
perspective.

Toru is a General Partner at
Incubate Fund. Following his
involvement in investment
development tasks at Japan
Associated Finance Co., Ltd.
(now JAFCO Group Co., Ltd.),
he founded his own venture
capital company. Having
become an Outside Director of
Sansan, Inc. in August 2007, hemakes general management
recommendations.

Toko is a Director at
CyberAgent, Inc., a Junior
Accountant, and a Juris Doctor.
After working with Japan
Airlines Co. Ltd., she joined
CyberAgent as a Standing
Auditor, and in 2017 becamea Director. Toko became an
Outside Director of Sansan,
Inc. in August 2021. She gives
guidance on auditing anddiversity, applying accounting
and legal knowledge alongwith corporate experience.

After working with DENTSU
INC., Taro founded dof inc.
in 2009 and became its
CEO. He is also working asa Communication Designer.
Taro became an Outside
Director of Sansan, Inc. inAugust 2022. He provides
recommendations on generalmanagement issues based on
his extensive experience as acommunication designer andthe insights he has acquired
as a board member of several
companies.

Date of appointment as
director

June 2007

June 2007

June 2007

August 2019

August 2020

August 2022

August 2007

August 2021

August 2022

Number of shares held *841,432,920

4,160,000

2,320,000

90,30081,20001,720,000

00

17 of 17 times

17 of 17 times

17 of 17 times

17 of 17 times

13 of 13 times

17 of 17 times

17 of 17 times

13 of 13 times

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

●

Data

−

Governance

Responsibilities andsignificant concurrent
position at outsidecompany

Attendance at Board of Directors meetings

FY202217 of 17 times

Committee membership

Audit & Supervisory Committee
Nomination andRemuneration Advisory
Committee●●

Skills, diversity

Corporate management

●

●

●

Data, information security

●

●

●

●

●

Finance, accounting, legal
Personnel, HR
development●

Global-mindedness●

Sustainability●

Primary reasons for above
designation●· Founder· Representative Director· Worked in the U.S.
· Chairperson, Kamiyama
Marugoto College of
Design, Technology, andEntrepreneurship●· Co-Founder· Director· Worked for a company
focused on Asia●

· Co-Founder· Director· CISO, DPO, and leads theEngineering Division· Worked in the U.S.

· Director· CHRO· Director at another company

●

●

●
●

●

●

· Director· CFO· M&A and financing advisory
services in Japan and theU.S.

· Attorney in Japan and New
York· Legal expertise in corporate
law, compliance, and labormatters· Representative director ofa venture capital company
operating domestically andinternationally●· Full-time auditor at anothercompany· Assistant public accountant· Doctor of Jurisprudence· Representative director ofanother company· Has lived in the U.S.

*1 Chief Executive Officer *2 Chief Product Officer *3 Chief Operating Officer *4 Chief Information Security Officer *5 Data Protection Officer *6 Chief Human Resources Officer *7 Chief
Financial Officer *8 As of May 31, 2023

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Sansan, Inc.

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Data

Compliance- Establishing a Whistleblower Hotline

quantitative targets for FY2029 including measures toachieve zero significant compliance violations and a 100%
compliance-related training completion rate on insider
trading, harassment prevention, etc.

Materiality Targets
Area

Material Issue

Establish a Firm Management Structure
to Support Rapid Business Growth

Ensurecompliance

FY2029 Target
0

0

100%

100%

Management Structure
Audit & Supervisory Committee

Board of Directors
Monitoring
Reporting■ Chairperson（Ultimately Responsible for Compliance of Sansan Group）
Representative Director & CEO■ Members
Full-time Directors, General Manager of Internal Audit Department,
General Manager of Legal Department, General Manager of Human
Resources Department

Compliance Committee Secretariat（Secretary General=General Manager of Legal Department）
Direction

Internal Audit Department
Internal Reporting Contact
Harassment Consultation Contact
Incident Reporting

ReportingDirection

ReportingResponsible for Compliance ofEach Subsidiary
Direction

88

Sansan, Inc.

ReportingInternal Reporting Contact(Contact Manager of Each Contact Point)
Compliance
Committee
Secretariat
Contact Point

Audit & Supervisory
Committee Contact
Point

Subject: Matters Concerning
Directors and Executive
Officers of Sansan Inc.

Subject: All Matters

Law Firm
Contact Point
Subject: All Matters

Receipt and Investigation of Internal Reporting
Reporting of Receipt andInvestigation Result

Internal Reporting

Explanation of
Operational Performance

Executives and Employees, etc. of Departments andSubsidiaries (People Eligible to Use Contact Points)

How the Whistleblowing System Works
Whistleblowers can make anonymous reports by email, using a
dedicated form, or by postal mail to each contact. After receiving
the report, the contact will report to the Compliance Committee
and the Audit & Supervisory Committee and conduct a fairand impartial investigation. If illegal activities are uncovered,necessary corrective and recurrence prevention measures will be
implemented.

Number of Whistleblowing Reports(cases)

FY2020

FY2021

FY202291114- Conducting Internal Audits
The Internal Auditing Department is directly under
the Representative Director. It conducts periodic
internal audits of each department and organization
to confirm their compliance with internal regulations.
Specifically, it provides suggestions and guidance for

improving operations and confirms that suggested
improvements are made. Results are then reported to theRepresentative Director and the audited departments.
It also meets regularly with the Audit & Supervisory
Committee and accounting auditor to share information.

Comprehensive Auditing

Security Audits

The Internal Auditing Department confirms that our business
operations and asset and facility management are appropriately
executed and managed, through independent and objective
audits covering all our business activities, including organizational
operations and business processes.

Through independent and objective audits, the Internal Auditing
Department confirms whether our security, including our
personal information protection management system (JIS), as
well as information system management operations that handle
information assets, are adequately maintained and performed.

Reporting

Departments/Subsidiaries

Implementing Compliance Training

Efforts to Ensure Legal Compliance
Under our Compliance Regulations, which define basic
matters related to compliance, we strive to ensure
thorough compliance by implementing measures such

Establishment

Investigation
Team

ReportingCompliance Committee

Cooperation

Compliance Committee

Data

Proportion of employees receiving
compliance-related training

Establishment/
Appointment

Corrective Measures,
Measures to Prevent
Recurrence, Disciplinary
ActionReporting Important Matter
Explanation of Operational Performance

FY2022 Result

Number of significant compliance violations

We have established a Compliance Committee chairedby the Representative Director, who also has ultimate
responsibility for compliance, and comprising full-time
Directors and the General Managers of the Internal
Auditing Department, Legal Department, and Human
Resources Division. The Compliance Committee helps
formulate related policies and measures and provides
overall compliance monitoring. Specifically, we havedesigned a program that integrates the structure andsystems aimed at promoting compliance, and weoperate it based on the PDCA cycle. Any complianceviolations occurring in each group company arereported to the Compliance Committee Secretariat, anda system to oversee group compliance has been set up.
The Committee meets once a year, in principle, and asneeded in the event of misconduct or other irregularities.

Each Company
Presidents

Audit & Supervisory
Committee

GovernanceAmong the five priority areas identified in 2022, under“Establish a Firm Management Structure to Support Rapid
Business Growth,” we identified “Ensure compliance” as amaterial issue. In August 2023, we established long-term

Monitoring

Strategies

Material Issues (Priority Issues)

Board of Directors

Story

In line with our philosophy, our basic policy is to conduct appropriate corporate activities with high ethicalstandards. We consider it essential to develop our business fairly and responsibly, using the added value wegenerate as a source of competitiveness. Under this approach, we have identified “Ensure compliance” as a priority
material issue and strive to instill compliance awareness among all employees.

We have a whistleblowing system to promptly identify
and deal with information on legal violations or potential
violations. The system is available to all employees(including contract, temporary, and part-time employees)
and former employees. There are three contact points:
an internal contact handled by the Internal Auditing
Department, an external contact outsourced to a law
firm, and an external contact managed by the Audit& Supervisory Committee. In accordance with theWhistle-Blower Protection Act, consultation contents andwhistleblower privacy are protected at the reporting
stage, and whistleblowers are fully protected fromdisadvantageous treatment. The external contacts arealso fully independent from the company. In addition
to the whistleblower hotline, a harassment consultation
contact has been established and is managed by the
Human Resources Division under strict confidentiality,
so employees can feel secure in discussing harassment
issues.

as a system for detecting wrongdoing and violations, aswell as awareness raising and training for officers andemployees.

We ensure all officers and employees undertake training
on preventing workplace harassment and correctly
understand factors causing harassment, such as abuse ofoneʼs position of power and lack of awareness of power
dynamics, as well as inadequate understanding andknowledge about different values. Besides formulating
management policies to prevent insider trading, we strive
to improve officersʼ and employeesʼ awareness andknowledge of legal compliance through regular seminars
and training sessions on relevant regulations.

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Data

Risk Management- Risk and Response Categories

Through our services, we deal with vital corporate information such as business cards and invoices, which raises
information security-related risks, such as handling of personal information and system infrastructure. Changes in
the internet usage environment, technological innovations, and shifts in user behavior also pose highly uncertain
risks. We are developing management systems and measures to counter these risks while strengthening themanagerial foundation that supports our rapid business growth.

Following our internal audit regulations, we formulate
audit plans, regularly identify and analyze risks during

our audit process, assess risks based on their frequency
and impact, and strive for prevention or early detection.

BCP Response to Large-Scale Disasters
To prepare for large-scale emergencies, suchas natural disasters, we have established abusiness continuity plan (BCP) that encompasses
structural measures and specific action plans. This
includes staffing arrangements and alternative
operations that we would adopt during essential
utility disruptions. Specifically, the BCP would be
implemented company-wide in the event of anearthquake with an intensity of six or higher at
our head office or upon management consensus.
If the BCP were activated, we would adhere topre-established departmental manuals, focusing

on business continuity and early resumption.
Each department creates manuals considering
strategies for business continuation, potential
damage assessment, impact analysis, recovery
objectives, and alternative plans for large-scaledisasters, with periodic reviews and revisions.
We also have established a disaster responsemanual that is aimed at ensuring personnel
safety and stable operations during emergencies,prioritizes our employeesʼ safety, and definesorganizational structures and responses for crisis
scenarios.

2) Equipment and network
stability• System failures due to natural disasters such as fires
and earthquakes, external damage, human error,or other unexpected events that interfere with theuse of our equipment and network• Conduct load balancing and periodic backups acrossmultiple servers• Set up real-time access log checking functions and an
immediate notification system for software failures• Conduct recovery training based on failure scenarios

Risks to services3) Service failures, etc.

• Problems arising in our applications, software, and/or systems• Discovery of critical defects that could interfere withour business operations• Build and maintain a highly reliable development system• Develop and implement incident guidelines for services

4) Internet access environments• New internet usage regulations being introduced
and having adverse effects• Gather information on internet-related legal regulations,
identify issues, and implement solutions5) Cloud business• Increased competition due to the emergence ofgroundbreaking services from other companies• Demand for cloud services falling significantly below
our expectations

Risks from external
environment• Create new value• Proactively introduce new technologies• Protect our intellectual property rights by obtaining
patents, etc.
• Promote M&A, and capital and business alliances

6) Responding to technologicalinnovations• Slow responses to technological innovations, etc.
• Unexpected development costs, etc.

7) Competition• Increased competition from existing operators andnew entrants8) Upfront investments inadvertising and promotions• Significantly increased expenditures due to changes
in advertising policies and plans• Monitor cost effectiveness of advertising activities

9) Investments such as
corporate acquisitions• Delayed business planning after an acquisition or
investment• Conduct sufficient due diligence on target companies• Carefully monitor and follow up with target companies

10) System infrastructure
investments• Unexpected additional investments in hardware andsoftware to ensure stable operation of services• Carefully monitor external access• Design appropriate system infrastructure investments toaccommodate business expansion11) Establishment ofmanagement control system• Delays in building a business structure and internalmanagement system to accommodate the scale ofour business• Develop rigorous internal control systems in line withbusiness and employee growth12) Training and securing humanresources• Lack of qualified personnel• Delays in securing sales personnel for the Sansan/
Bill One Business, and loss of sales personnel• Actively recruit human resources• Strengthen systems through internal training, etc.
• Improve working environments

13) Dependence on specificindividuals• Occurrence of any event that makes it difficult for
Representative Director Chika Terada to continue
working for any reason• Ensure company structure is not overly reliant on the
Representative Director• Strengthen information-sharing among board members
and the managing organization

14) Laws and regulations• Impacts of new privacy-related laws and regulationsin Japan and overseas, as well as laws regulatinginternet-related businesses• Gather information on legal regulations, etc., identify
issues, and implement solutions15) Intellectual property right
infringement, etc.

• Claims for damages or injunctions from third parties
for patent or trademark infringement• Third-party infringement of our intellectual property• Conduct patent infringement searches through patent
firms• Apply for and register trademarks• Implement legal measures

Overseas risks16) Overseas expansion• Difficulty addressing risks specific to foreigncountries• Delays in monetizing overseas businesses• Gather information, identify issues, and implement
solutions in regions where business is to be developed• Formulate appropriate business plans

Others17) Granting incentives• Dilution of existing shareholdersʼ shares fromexercising issued stock options *1• Design stock options with due consideration of market
conditions and impacts on existing shareholders

Investment risks

Human risks

Data

procedures. Incidents are categorized based on
confidentiality, integrity, and availability, with priorities
assigned for each type. Additionally, decision-makers aredesignated for incident judgments and responses withineach department.

• Leaks, loss, falsification, or unauthorized use ofcustomer information due to natural disasters,
accidents, malicious and/or unauthorized access byexternal parties, and intentional acts or negligenceby inside parties

Information
security risks- Incident Guidelines
We have established guidelines for handling incidents
such as disasters, accidents, unauthorized access, orvulnerabilities that could affect service delivery. The
guidelines set out department-specific organization,command chains, decision criteria, and response

Handling of personal
information• Establish and operate a personal information protection
management system• Privacy Mark certification• ISMS, ISO27017 certification• Require all employees to acquire Protection of individual
Information Person• Gather information on new legal regulations in Japanand overseas, and implement necessary responses• Ensure compliance with laws and regulations andmanage contractors' safety

Governance- Risk Identification and Analysis

Responses

Strategies

understanding the changes in our business environment,
we regularly review potential risks and prepare measures
including preventing the risks from manifesting.

Details

1)

Managing Risks
We are actively fortifying our risk management system
and methods against risks that could significantly impact
on our business. Recognizing the likelihood of risks and

Item

Story

Classification

Legal risks*1 The number of shares granted as stock options as of July 31, 2023 was 3,459,544 shares, which account for 2.76% of the total number of issued shares.

90

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ESG Data
Story- Environment *1
Unit

FY2020

FY2021

FY2022

Energy consumed
Electricity

728

1,044

1,399

3

thousand Nm

68

84

107

GJ

10,361

14,19318,643

Total water withdrawn

m3

2,329

4,096

6,425

Municipal potable water

3

m

237

290

461

Grey water

3

m

2,091

3,805

5,963

Scope 1

t-CO2

0

0

0

Scope 2 (location-based)

t-CO2

477

639

840

Scope 2 (market-based)

t-CO2

525

668

851

Scope 1 and 2 (market-based)

t-CO2

525

668

851

Scope 3t-CO2−

15,67918,638Category 1: Purchased goods and services

t-CO2

−

12,27015,147

Category 2: Capital goods

t-CO2

−

2,098

1,631

Category 3: Fuel- and energy-related activities notincluded in scope 1 or scope 2

t-CO2

−

133

175

Category 4: Upstream transportation anddistribution

t-CO2

−

107

141

Category 5: Waste generated in operations

t-CO2

−

13

16

Category 6: Business travel

t-CO2

−

85

310

Category 7: Employee commuting

t-CO2

−

165

330

Category 8: Upstream leased assets

t-CO2

−

−

−

Category 9: Downstream transportation anddistribution

t-CO2

−

−

−

Category 10: Processing of sold products

t-CO2

−

−

−

Category 11: Use of sold products

t-CO2

−

−

−

Gas *

Total energy consumed *3

Strategies

MWh2

Water usage *4

GHG emissions *5

P93 - ESG Data

P101 - Results by Segment

Category 12: End-of-life treatment of sold products

t-CO2

−

0

0

P97 - Consolidated Financial

P102 - Company and Stock

Category 13: Downstream leased assets

t-CO2

−

805

884

Category 14: Franchises

t-CO2

−

−

−

Category 15: Investments

t-CO2

−

−

−

Others

t-CO2

−

−

−

t-CO2

−

16,347

19,489t-CO2/hundred
million yen

−

81.7

78.2

Statements

Information

Scope 1, 2 and 3 (market-based)
Scope 1,2 and 3 emissions intensity (per net sales)

Data

CONTENTS

Governance

Data*1 The table above shows calculations for the Companyʼs non-consolidated results and covers 97.7% (percentage of non-consolidated net sales to consolidated net sales) of our business scope as of FY2022.
*2 After calculating the consumption per office area using the actual results in certain offices where the consumption can be determined, gas consumption is calculated by multiplying this value by the total
area of all offices where gas can be used.
*3 Using the calculation method based on the Energy Conservation Law, total energy consumed is calculated based on the total values of electricity and gas consumption.
*4 Total water withdrawn is calculated based on the amount of water used per employee is calculated using the actual results at Sansan offices where the amount of usage per person can be determined,
and the value is then multiplied by the total number of employees. In addition, due to the refinement of the aggregation method, the results prior to fiscal year ended May 31, 2022 have beenrecalculated.
*5 Scope 1 is calculated by aggregating direct GHG emissions from the offices and facilities owned by the Company. Scope 2 is calculated by aggregating by indirect GHG emissions from the use ofpurchased electricity and thermal energy in each office. Scope 3 is calculated by aggregating the GHG emissions of the entire value chain (Categories 1 through 15), excluding Scope 1 and Scope 2. In
addition, due to the refinement of the aggregation method, the results prior to FY2021 have been recalculated.

92

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03_Governance

Data

Story

- Society *6
Unit

FY2020

FY2021

FY2022

Unit

Composition of employees
Number of employees

Turnover rate

FY2021

FY2022
9.8

12.9

Male

%

7.2

10.2

13.8

Female

%

4.2

8.8

10.7

Percentage of paid holidays taken *9

%

60.6

68.6

75.1

Percentage of parental leave taken

%

58.5

74.5

73.2

Male

%

39.3

61.8

64.8

Female

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

1,172

1,326

Percentage of female

%

34.2

33.6

35.2

Percentage of foreign nationals

%

3.0

2.6

2.6

Percentage of employees locatedoffshore *7

%

1.0

0.8

0.7

Percentage of employees withdisabilities *8*9

%

1.6

2.4

2.6

persons

313

404

420

Percentage of female

%

12.1

13.1

13.1

Percentage of female creators

%

46.9

53.8

55.6

Male

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

Number of employees in Businessdivision *11

persons

614

766

897

Female

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

%

45.1

44.5

45.0

Unipos posting rate *13

%

59.4

62.3

59.6

persons

145

182

202

Number of appreciation posts in Unipos *13

subscriptions

Approx. 36,000

Approx. 49,000

Approx. 45,000

%

14.5

16.5

17.8

Percentage of employees praised in Unipos *13

%

83.3

86.0

84.7

Average response rate for engagement survey

%

87.6

85.8

82.6

Average response rate for stress checks

%

80.1

71.7

77.9

hours

−

−

Approx. 5,600

Investments in Geek Seek *15

million yen

25

39

43

Investments in measures for interaction among
employees

million yen

3

5

12

Total number of participants in internal coaching

persons−−

Approx. 800

%

81.8

82.3

88.0

cases

0

0

0

Percentage of female
Number of managers
Percentage of female
Recruitment
Number of new graduates
Percentage of female
Number of mid-career
Percentage of female
Percentage of recruitment throughreferrals

persons

34

70

74

%

23.5

28.6

25.7

persons

231

260

232

%

31.2

34.0

41.4

%

−

−

12.0

Other human resources related *12
Average length of service

years

2.6

2.8

3.1

Male

years

2.7

2.8

3.1

Female

years

2.6

2.9

3.2

yen

6,275,941

6,661,892

7,063,337

Male

yen

6,580,904

6,988,923

7,431,655

Femaleyen

5,549,397

5,896,162

6,244,215

Average age

years old

33.6

32.4

32.4

Male

years old

33.8

32.6

32.7

Femaleyears old

33.1

32.0

32.0

Average annual salary

Sansan, Inc.

Percentage of employees returning to work afterparental leave

Data

934

Governance

6.3

Strategies%

persons

Number of employees in STEM
divisions *10

94

FY2020Training related
Total participation time for Katachi-related training *14

Information security related
Proportion of those qualified as Protection ofIndividual Information Person
Number of major incidents*6 In principle, the table above shows calculations for regular employees and contract employees of the Company and its subsidiary, Sansan Global Pte. Ltd. In addition, the number of employees andratios are calculated based on actual results as of the end of each fiscal year.
*7 As of the end of May 2023, we have employees from 19 nations including Japan.
*8 Calculated for regular employees, contract employees and part-timers of the Company.
*9 Once the necessary changes have been made, calculated on the fiscal year ending in March (April to March of the following year).
*10 Number of employees in STEM divisions are calculated for engineers, R&D, and creators.
*11 Number of employees in Business divisions are calculated for regular employees and contract employees outside of the STEM divisions.
*12 Calculated for regular employees.
*13 We are utilizing a peer bonus-centered, all-employee participation platform service provided by Unipos Inc.
*14 Total time spent by all employees participating in opportunities to discuss our philosophy, etc.
*15 We aggregate the amount of subsidies for STEM Division employees to purchase books and tools and to participate in events.

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03_Governance

Data

Consolidated Financial Statements- Consolidated B/S
Unit

FY2020

FY2021

Assets

FY2022

Board of Directors *17

Number of Directors(millions of yen)

FY2016FY2017FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021Story- Governance *16

FY2022Current Assets
99Percentage of female

%

10.0

22.2

22.2

Percentage of outside

%

40.0

44.4

44.4

Percentage of independent

%

20.0

33.3

44.4

Number of Board of Directorsʼ
meetings

meetings

17

17

17

Percentage of attendance

%

100.0

99.4

100.0

Cash and Deposits

2,004

3,546

5,627

12,815

12,38915,432

21,114

Accounts Receivable - Trade

165

207

318

441

571

756

1,180

Prepaid Expenses

460

255

322

410

469

478

604

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

-5

-4

-2

-3

-4

-3

-32

Others

38

157

30

176

117

194

341

2,668

4,166

6,298

13,84013,542

16,85623,207

Total Property, Plant and Equipment

113

164

406

414

504

806

770

Total Intangible Assets

498

602

835

926

1,209

1,147

1,533

Software

497

601

834

925

1,023

917

827

Goodwill

-

-

-

-

185

229

706

208

365

1,538

7,639

9,053

7,481

5,689

Investment Securities

-

-

1,093

6,941

8,344

6,262

3,705

Deferred Tax Assets

-

-

-

145

-

416

595

Others

-

365

444

697

708

803

1,388

820

1,132

2,780

8,979

10,768

9,435

7,993

3,489

5,299

9,079

22,81924,31026,292

31,200Governance

10

Strategies

persons

Audit & Supervisory Committee
Total Current Assets
persons444Percentage of female

%

25.0

50.0

50.0

Percentage of outside

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

Percentage of independent

%

50.0

75.0

100.0

Number of Audit & Supervisory
Committee meetings

meetings

13

12

13

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

Data

Number of Directors serving on the Audit & Supervisory
Committee

Non-Current Assets

Percentage of attendance

OthersTotal Investments and Others Assets
Number of whistle-blowing reports

cases

9

11

14

Number of significant compliance violations

cases

0

0

0

Proportion of employees receiving compliance-related
training

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

Percentage of participants taking insider trading
regulation training

%

100.0

100.0

100.0

Percentage of participants taking harassment
prevention training

%

100.0

−

100.0

Percentage of participants taking training on joining
the company%

Total Non-Current Assets
100.0

100.0

100.0

*16 The table above shows calculations for the Companyʼs non-consolidated results. In addition, the number of directors and ratios are calculated based on actual results as of the end of each ﬁscal year.
*17 Calculated including Directors serving on the Audit & Supervisory Committee.

96

Sansan, Inc.

Total Assets

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01_Story

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03_Governance

Data

Liabilities

FY2016FY2017FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021

FY2022Current Liabilities

296

13

18

20

200

-

-

Current Portion of Long-Term
Borrowings

113

94

133

1,267

1,085

477

558

2,798

3,923

5,289

6,719

8,199

10,729Accounts Payable -Other

320

654

770

596

1,175

1,081

1,929

Others

278

259

584

1,161

1,062

1,749

1,764

3,109

3,819

5,428

8,335

10,243

11,507

14,982FY2017FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021

FY2022Net Sales

4,839

7,324

10,206

13,362

16,184

20,42025,510

Cost of Sales

1,026

1,435

1,597

1,821

1,992

2,515

3,683

Gross Proﬁt

3,812

5,888

8,608

11,541

14,192

17,904

21,827

78.8%

80.4%

84.3%

86.4%

87.7%

87.7%

85.6%

SG&A

4,590

8,950

9,458

10,783

13,455

17,272

21,627

Adjusted Operating Proﬁt *18-778-3,061

-849

757

785

730

942

-

-

-

5.7%

4.9%

3.6%

3.7%

-778

-3,061

-849

757

736

631

199

Operating Proﬁt Margin

-

-

-

5.7%

4.6%

3.1%

0.8%

Non-Operating Income

9

10

16

8

106

1,042

328

Non-Operating Expenses

11

26

58

330

468

705

405

-780

-3,077

-891

435

375

968

122

Extraordinary Income

-

-

4

-

0

105

817

Extraordinary Losses

3

1

50

100

4

165

1,035

-784

-3,078

-937

335

370

908

-96

6

7

7

-4

189

56

60

-790

-3,085

-945

339

182

857

-141

-

-

-

2.5%

1.1%

4.2%

-

EPS (yen) *19-11.79-42.11-10.10

2.75

1.47

6.87

-1.13

SG&A

4,590

8,950

9,458

10,783

13,455

17,272

21,627Advertising Expenses

1,573

4,478

2,831

2,022

2,824

2,969

3,306

Personnel Expenses

1,282

1,689

2,411

3,701

4,745

6,758

8,349

Server/PC-Related Expenses

303

513

735

844

1,008

1,285

1,719

Rents

235

308

523

693

810

921

1,059

Recruiting Expenses

107

182

338

443

489

678

636

Share-Based Payment Expenses

-

-

-

-

33

72

702

Expenses Arising from Business Combinations (Amortization of
Goodwill and Amortization of Intangible Assets)

-

-

-

-

15

25

39

1,088

1,777

2,618

3,079

3,577

4,560

5,814

Gross Proﬁt Margin

Adjusted Operating Proﬁt Margin
Operating Proﬁt

Total Current Liabilities

Non-Current Liabilities

Ordinary Proﬁt

Long-Term Borrowings

190

127

233

3,892

879

2,547

2,838

Deferred Tax Liabilities

-

-

-

-

571

-

-

Others

16

39

43

38

31

144

188

207

166

277

3,931

1,482

2,691

3,027

Proﬁt (Loss) Before Income Taxes
Total Income Taxes
Proﬁt (Loss) Attributable to Owners of Parent

Total Non-Current Liabilities

Proﬁt (Loss) Attributable to Owners of Parent Margin
Total Liabilities

Net Assets

FY20163,986

FY20175,706

FY201812,267FY201911,725

FY202014,199FY2021

18,009FY2022

Total Shareholdersʼ Equity

179

1,315

3,369

10,557

10,892

11,832

12,454

Accumulated Other Comprehensive
Income

-6

-2

-7

-15

1,623

112

206

Share Acquisition Rights

-

-

10

10

65

142

457

Non-Controlling Interests

Total Net Assets

Total Liabilities and Net Assets

98

3,316

Sansan, Inc.

-

-

-

-

2

5

72

172

1,312

3,372

10,552

12,584

12,093

13,190

3,489

5,299

9,079

22,81924,31026,292

31,200

OthersData

FY2016

Governance

2,100(millions of yen)

Strategies

Short-Tern Borrowings

Advances Received- Consolidated P/LStory(millions of yen)

*18 Operating Proﬁt + Share-Based Payment Expenses + Expenses Arising from Business Combinations (amortization of Goodwill and amortization of Intangible Assets)*19 As the Company conducted a four-for-one common stock split effective December 1, 2021, EPS were calculated on the assumption that the stock was split at the beginning of
FY2016.

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01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Results by Segment(millions of yen)

FY2016FY2017FY2018FY2019FY2020

FY2021

FY2020

FY2022

Cash Flows from Operating Activities

FY2021

FY2022

16,184

20,42025,510Sansan/Bill One Business

14,605

18,10522,516

14,51917,214

19,793

13,811

16,34918,688

707

865

1,104

Bill One

84

826

2,414

1

64

308

1,582

2,213

2,867

B2C Services

296

286

303

B2B Services

1,286

1,927

2,563

Sansan

-937

335

370

908

-96

Depreciation

236

366

459

615

691

768

898

Loss (Gain) on Sale of Investment Securities

-

-

-

-

-32

-979

-291

Share of Loss (Proﬁt) of Entities Accounted for Using Equity Method

-

-

-

51

285

609

287

OthersDecrease (Increase) in Notes and Accounts Receivable - Trade

-60

-41

-111

-118

-121

-183

-391

Eight Business

Decrease (Increase) in Prepaid Expenses

-100

204

-67

-84

-50

12

-101

Increase (Decrease) in Accounts Payable - Other

-122

333

50

-108

620

-90

780

Others

-

126

198

Increase (Decrease) in Advances Received

896

697

1,125

1,366

1,401

1,479

2,423

Adjustments

-3

-25

-72

Income Taxes Paid

-3

-6

-7

-7

-246

-144

-471

Adjusted Operating Proﬁt (Total)

785

730

942

Others

137

-85

560

824

346

743

810

Sansan/Bill One Business

5,290

5,752

7,005

Cash Flows from Operating Activities

198-1,609

1,072

2,822

3,011

3,123

3,848

Eight Business

-732

-355

-170

-

-22

-36

-3,772-4,643-5,856

4.9%

3.6%

3.7%

36.2%

31.8%

31.1%

Eight Business

-

-

-

Others---Sansan Recurring Sales *20
Sansan Other Sales

OthersAdjustments

Purchase of Property, Plant and Equipment

-91

-72

-316

-260

-273

-468

-200

Purchase of Intangible Assets

-250

-408

-574

-535

-636

-453

-480

Purchase of Investment Securities---1,093-5,901-336-2,555-359

Proceeds from Sales of Investment Securities

-

-

-

-

1,680

3,224

1,406

Others

-34

-198

-298

-491

-985

-760

998

Cash Flows from Investing Activities

-376

-679

-2,282-7,189-551-1,014

1,364

Adjusted Operating Proﬁt Margin
Sansan/Bill One Business

FY2020

FY2021

FY2022

Sansan/Bill One Business

Net Increase (Decrease) in Short-Term Borrowings

89

-283

4

2

173

-200

-

Proceeds from Long-Term Borrowings

200

50

290

5,460

-

3,250

900

Repayments of Long-Term Borrowings

-130

-131

-145

-686

-3,220-2,190-527

Last 12 Months Average of Monthly Churn Rate for Sansan*21

Proceeds from Issuance of Shares

-

4,206

2,989

6,820

152

209

307

Others

-7

-15

-6

-32

-7

-159

-17

Cash Flows from Financing Activities

151

3,826

3,132

11,563-2,902909

523

Effect of Exchange Rate Change on Cash and Cash Equivalents

-3

4

0

-1

2

3

4

Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash and Cash Equivalents

-29

1,541

1,922

7,194

-440

3,021

5,739

Cash and Cash Equivalents at the Beginning of Period

2,033

2,004

3,546

5,468

12,663

12,223

15,245

Cash and Cash Equivalents at the End of Period

2,004

3,546

5,468

12,663

12,223

15,24520,985

Number of Sansan Subscriptions (Subscriptions)Sansan, Inc.

(millions of yen)

- KPI by Business Segment

Cash Flows from Financing Activities

Data-3,078Governance-784

Strategies

Net Sales (Total)

Proﬁt (Loss) before Income Taxes

Cash Flows from Investing Activities

100(millions of yen)

- P/L by Business Segment

Story- Consolidated C/F

7,744

8,488

8,969

162

170

184

0.63%

0.62%

0.44%

Bill One MRR *22

19

116

316

Number of Bill One Paid Subscriptions (Subscriptions)

188

776

1,581

Monthly Recurring Sales per Bill One Paid Subscription (Thousands of yen)

105

149

200

-

0.49%

0.64%

Number of Eight Users *23 (Tens thousands of persons)

292

310

331

Number of Eight Team Subscriptions (Subscriptions)

2,253

2,819

3,703

Monthly Recurring Sales per Sansan Subscription (Thousands of yen)

Last 12 Months Average of Monthly Churn Rate for Bill One *21
Eight Business*20 Fixed revenue with regard to Sansan (unaudited)*21 Ratio of decrease in monthly fees associated with contract cancellations to total monthly fees for existing contracts*22 Monthly Recurring Revenue*23 Number of users that downloaded the application and registered their own business cards

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

101

01_Story

02_Strategies

03_Governance

Data

Company and Stock Information

Main Shareholders

The Master Trust Bank of Japan ,Ltd. (Trust Account)

17,183,400

13.70%

Custody Bank of Japan, Ltd. (Trust Account)

6,486,100

5.17%

Kei Tomioka

4,160,000

3.32%

MSIP CLIENT SECURITIES

3,484,900

2.78%

DCM Ventures China Fund (DCM VII), L. P.

3,314,000

2.64%

Sansan Global Development Center, Inc.（Philippines）

MLI FOR CLIENT GENERAL OMNI NON COLLATERALNON TREATY-PB

2,412,276

1.92%

logmi, Inc.

Kenji Shiomi

2,320,000

1.85%

STATE STREET BANK AND TRUST COMPANY 505303

2,200,200

1.75%

CNK, Inc.

2,047,080

1.63%

Sansan, Inc.

Head Office

Aoyama Oval Building 13F, 5-52-2 Jingumae,
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0001, Japan
Sansan Global Pte. Ltd.（Singapore）

Diamond Corporate Data Services, Inc.
CREATIVE SURVEY INC.
Institute of Language Understanding Inc.
Founded onJune 11, 2007

Capital6,633 million yen (as of August 31, 2023)

External Evaluation

We received an “A” rating in the MSCI ESG Rating
provided by MSCI. We have also been selected as aconstituent of the “FTSE Blossom Japan Sector Relative

Stock Code4443

Stock Exchange Registration

Tokyo Stock Exchange, Prime Market

Fiscal Year

June 1 – May 31

Shareholder Registry Administrator

Tokyo Securities Transfer Agent Co., Ltd.

One Trading Unit

Data

- ESG

*2

Number of Shares Constituting

Governance33.04%

Strategies

41,432,920

Company Name

Stock Information

Shareholding ratio

Chikahiro Terada

Company Information *1

Group Companies

Number of shares

Story

Name

- Annual Report
The Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF)
selected Sansan, Inc.ʼs Annual Report for 2022 as an“excellent integrated report” and a “most-improved
integrated report.”

100

Total Number of Issued Shares

125,410,584

Number of Shareholders

8,050

Distribution of Shares by
Shareholder Type■ Foreign ﬁnancial institutions and individuals■ Domestic ﬁnancial institutions■ Other domestic corporations■ Securities

We also received a Bronze Award in the PDF Versionof Annual Reports category at the International ARC
Awards, hosted by MerComm, Inc., an independent
awards organization in the U.S.

- Corporate Website
Our corporate website was selected as an “Excellent
Site,” an overall award given as part of the “FY2022
Corporate Website Quality Ranking Survey of All
Japanese Listed Companies.” The survey is published by■ Individuals and others

Index,” an index designed by FTSE to measure theperformance of Japanese companies with high ESG(environmental, social, governance) ratings.

47.33%
28.98%
20.71%
1.71%
1.28%

Website Information

Nikko Investor Relations Co., Ltd., which conducts surveys
and evaluations of the quality of the websites of all listedcompanies from an independent perspective. Surveys
are published annually.

・Corporate Website
・Investor Relations
・Sustainability site

https://www.corp-sansan.com/
https://ir.corp-sansan.com/en/ir.html
https://www.corp-sansan.com/sustainability/*1 As of October 31, 2023
*2 As of May 31, 2023

102

Sansan, Inc.

ANNUAL REPORT 2023

103

© Sansan, Inc.